Wasurenagusa (Forget-Me-Not)
by Six-string Samurai
Summary: Ranma and Akane are slowly coming to terms with each other and are now facing the problems of dealing with the other fiancees.
1. Ignorance is Bliss

A Ranma ½ Fanfic by INABN

Original Ranma ½ Characters and Settings ©Rumiko Takahashi

Used without express permission.

Wasurenagusa Chapter One: Ignorance is Bliss? 

            Another bright morning arrived for those residing in the Tendou dojo, home to the School of Indiscriminate Grappling, better known as Anything Goes Martial Arts.  The sun was shining brightly through soft clouds, and birds were singing pleasantly amidst the leaves of the trees.  Overall, the day showed the signs of a peaceful start.  Then as if on some perverse cue a loud yell split the air followed immediately by the splash of a fair amount of cold water.

            Sopping wet, a rather large panda pulled itself from the pond in the back yard.  The panda narrowed its eyes in the direction of the dojo.  From the porch, leading up into the dojo, a young dark haired man rolled his eyes at the plodding panda.  "Getting slow in your age pop?"  The query received no response other than a chuff from the throat of the panda.  "Well, c'mon Kasumi told me breakfast is ready old man."

            Seemingly from out of nowhere, a wooden sign appeared in the panda's hand.  Breakfast? Hurry up boy!   Then with that the huge form dashed into the house brushing past the startled youth.  In the rush, a broad paw thumped the boy in the back, launching him like a rocket toward the koi pond.  "Aiii, watch what yer doing old maa…" Following the outcry, those in the house heard another splash from the pond.

            Moments later the screen door leading out to the back slid open again.  In the doorway, a diminutive redheaded girl glowered at the pandas back.  "Why'd ya go an' do that pop?"  Glistening water pooled around her feet and she stomped in, plopping down on her knees beside the table.  Glaring daggers at the panda, she picked up her chopsticks and began eating.  "So, Ranma...you planning on going to school like that, again?"  One of the other three girls around the table asked in a snickered tone.

            "Very funny Nabiki, very funny…" the redhead trailed off sarcastically.  "You know that I'd not go like this with _him_ waiting."  Ranma suppressed a shudder at the mere thought of the egotistical Kunou.  "The Blue Blunder will just have ta get his jollies from _someone_ _else_ today."  The redhead failed to notice a shadow looming just over her head.  "I mean that jerk needs to find a healthier obsession, one that doesn't involve lusting after _my_ body.  Not that I blame him of course what with," Ranma never finished the sentence as her face was thrust into the table by the force of a heavy flowerpot striking from above.

            "Now Akane, that wasn't very nice."  The comment came from an older girl, one wearing an apron.  "I'm sure Ranma didn't mean anything by it."  The calm tone of her sister Kasumi succeeded in cooling down Akane's flaring temper.  With something of a cross between a huff and a sigh, Akane sat down again.  "Now, finish your breakfast, or you'll all be late for class, again."  Kasumi ceased speaking and began to start eating her own meal.

            "Uncute tomboy," was muttered, or something similar to that, since the groan from the redhead was muffled as she struggled to remove her face from the newly imprinted tabletop.  _Another day started with a bang_, Ranma thought as she peeled herself from the surprisingly undamaged table.  Shooting a glance at the time, the three younger girls gave a start, they were going to be late again if they didn't get going.  "Um, Kasumi…any hot," the redhead began to ask just as Kasumi pleasantly gestured toward the kitchen.

            Nabiki had left the dojo ahead of Ranma and Akane, as usual.  This left the two together, running toward Furinkan High and the awaiting self-important Kunou.  Having titled himself the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High was something of a running joke with a number of the student body.  Of which no one, save Ranma and few select others, would dare admit to the delusional kendoist for fear of a swift and assuredly terrible retribution.

            Surprisingly, the now male Ranma, _thanks to a kettle of hot water Kasumi thoughtfully provided_, made it to the front gate of the school without another gender-bending incident.  Not surprisingly, he was justifiably worried.  As a human water magnet, he had somehow miraculously managed to avoid the old crone's morning salutations.  He still had the notion that the little woman derived a perverse joy in soaking him nearly every morning on his way to class.  Akane reminded him without fail that the little woman never even paid attention when haphazardly tossing a pail full of water into the street.

            None of that mattered much anymore, for good or bad, the day was off at a reasonable start.  At least some things don't change, thought Ranma as Kunou had become one with the earth with the turbulent passing of Ranma and Akane through the gates of Furinkan.  One outstretched hand clutched his bokken, while the other remained imprinted in the ground at an awkward angle.  Kunou gasped through the pair of footprints marring what he considered his 'noble visage'.  Rolling to his side after a few moments of reflection the Blue Thunder watched as the fair Akane Tendou entered the main building alongside that treacherous fiend Ranma Saotome.  His fingers gripped the wooden practice sword as his thoughts flitted through the past few weeks.

            Ranma had only been in Nerima scantly a month and a half, and in that time he had slighted Kunou at every turn.  At least, that is how Kunou saw it.  He vowed to liberate Akane from the nefarious influence Saotome exerted over her and the mysterious pig-tailed girl.  _Ah, the pig-tailed goddess…_His honorable romantic sense now dwelled on that lovely red-haired vision.  _Admirable will, abounding strength, illustrious…_ A strident ring jolted Kunou out of his poetic reverie.  _Ah_, _the tardy bell…what!_

            Nabiki arched a brow in silent question as Kunou walked into class, late again.  While this wasn't unusual, the kendoist made every effort to drag his beaten carcass to homeroom on time.  Ranma couldn't have beaten him that badly or he would have been in the infirmary instead of trudging in late.  _Perhaps there would be something profitable to extract from Kunou at lunch._  Nabiki averted her eyes, turning to focus on what the teacher was droning on about.

            Ranma breathed a sigh of relief, for once, he was not late to class for some reason or another.  Thanking his good fortune, he shot a glance over at Akane who favored him with a wry look.  _So much for a good start, well things could always be worse_, his thoughts turned back to that morning as he absently rubbing the lump acquired at breakfast.  Maybe he had been speaking just a tad bit too hastily.  **_Or, heaven forbid, speaking without thinking it over first_**.  _Still, that tomboy wasn't entitled to beat me senseless every time she felt slighted._

            "Ranma!  Are you paying attention, or do you want to spend the rest of class out in the hall?"  The teacher's voice startled Ranma who looked about sheepishly.  The reset of class had already started working on the problems written on the board.  Akane added insult to injury when she turned his way.  He watched as her mouth silently formed words that looked suspiciously like 'Ranma you idiot'.  This made him flush slightly for some reason.

            Determined to lessen the jab, Ranma blatantly avoided making eye contact with Akane for the remainder of the class.  This tactic worked perhaps all too well and succeeded in flustering her.  She was used to her taunts met with rebukes, not silence, and this was certainly more than that. The macho jerk was pointedly ignoring her outright!  Part of her mind attempted to notify her that she was likely to end up holding buckets out in the hall again if she carried out what she was planning to do to Ranma.  That trivial voice failed where it had numerous times before.

            Suddenly the light from the window was eclipsed, a menacing shadow reached across Ranma's desk.  Turning halfway, he belatedly noted the menacing figure staring down as it towered over him.  The form looked hauntingly familiar, except for the large square shaped head.  _Oh no, she's got a desk!  _"Ranma…," Akane hissed between clenched teeth.  The sharp crack of wood splintering across a reasonably hard skull resounded against the walls of the small classroom.  She stood there for a moment glaring down at the body writhing amid the debris of the wrecked desk.  Her face flushed and she was breathing heavily, as if she had run several miles at top speed.

            Some time later when Ranma regained a semblance of consciousness, he found himself laid out on a cot in the school infirmary.  "What happened? Oh, _Hurricane Akane_.  What'd I do _this_ time?" He shook his head both to clear it and in exasperation.  No matter what he did, that tomboy found something about it that aggravated her.  "Speaking of Akane, where is she?"  He looked around but the place was empty. "She could've stuck around 'til I woke up…Sheesh.  This is gettin' weird.  Gotta be a nurse around here somewhere," he muttered as he sat up rather painfully.

            Peeking his head out the door, he didn't see anyone around.  "Where'd everyone go?"  He couldn't hear any voices float out into the hall from the classrooms as usual.  Craning his neck to look at the clock in the infirmary he shrugged.  "Lunch time already?  I was out longer than usual.  She must've really laid it to me.  I'd be impressed if she weren't so freakin' angry at me _all the time_."  He mentally stressed that last part as a reminder to himself that he would never understand women.

            Checking around one last time for a nurse, he walked out into the hall to retrieve his books from homeroom since Akane had probably been too mad to consider getting them.  A glance into the room told him that his books weren't there.  "Maybe…naw, she wouldn't."  His stomach protested and derailed his train of thought sending it on a new course.  Food sounded good right about now.  With that in mind, he moved off toward the cafeteria, not as good as Kasumi's cooking, but he was in a rush this morning and hadn't been able to grab anything for lunch when he left the dojo.

            Navigating the line, Ranma made it to the front after a few moments.  Lunch had started just before he woke up, so he hadn't missed much time.  Jostling a few people aside, not actually noticing them, he got his food and turned to find a place to sit.  He noticed Nabiki approaching Kunou apart from the crowd.  _Wonder what scheme she is cooking up this time.  _His thoughts shifted again, when he saw Akane sitting at her usual table.  He couldn't see her face from this angle, so couldn't venture to guess what she was thinking.

            Nabiki had finally managed to corner Kunou, his ministrations had not helped much, but she had contingencies for such minor setbacks.  A hand deftly pulled a small folder from within her inner coat pocket.  "Here Kunou baby, you might be interested in these."  As she spoke, one hand slid the folder open and revealed the dozen or so glossy photographs.  "Six of your pig-tailed goddess," mentally she shuddered at the image those words brought to mind.  "And six pictures of Akane."

            Kunou's eyes nearly teared up at the sight of his two loves.  Emphasis on the word _his_, since neither of the two depicted in the photos wanted anything to do with Kunou other than beat him into a quivering pile of mewling flesh.  For a moment, Nabiki feared he would launch into a tirade of poetry and go on again about the dilemma that he faced.  She avoided the irritable experience as Kunou gathered himself, somewhat; to demand what price she wanted this time.  "Nabiki Tendou, what would you have me pay for such virtuous examples as these?"

            Again, she nearly scoffed outright; virtuous indeed, she had painstakingly taken the time to make those pictures as scandalous as possible.  This was just further proof as to exactly how delusional Kunou really was.  "7,000 yen, for the two sets."  Her business sense urged her to charge a higher price, but eliciting information from Kunou would be far easier if she didn't hit his pocketbook outright.  Besides, he was a regular customer of these particular wares, and she could always up the price next time.  Kunou of course fervently agreed to himself that the price was fair, coming from Nabiki.

            "Nabiki Tendou, we seem to have a deal," with that, Kunou pulled forth the agreed amount of bills, not without a little hesitancy.

            Pocketing the money that Kunou handed over with his usual bitter reluctance she set out to unearth the desired information on Kunou's early morning escapade.  While he wasn't the brightest of students, the Kendo team captain's flagrant code of ethics was tiresome to navigate.  As he tended to doggedly pursue matters that piqued his interest Nabiki did not want to absently strike a chord with her evasive questioning.  Attempting to appear as offhand as she could, Nabiki fronted a smile, one of her _nicer_ ones, "So, Kunou baby…"

            Akane glanced dejectedly at the stack of books piled atop the table next to her own book bag.  Ranma didn't usually take this long to come out to lunch, aside from the fact that he might still be in the infirmary.  _But, this was Ranma after all.  Since when did a little bump to the head keep him away from food?_ _Unless,_ she thought, _No I didn't hit him _that_ hard even if it 'was' with a desk.  Maybe he was just waking up**, or maybe he was mad at you and found somewhere else to sit today**_, that little nagging voice chose that moment to speak up.  Akane clenched her fist adamant that he was the one who had been…**_doing nothing wrong_**, her conscience finished for her.

            Being a little self-absorbed at the moment, Akane failed to notice as Ranma made his way over to sit down by her intending to apologize, though for _what_ he wasn't sure.  So when she told her conscience to "shut up and go away," it was quite understandable on Ranma's part to think that she was talking to him.  In fact, she never realized that she had been speaking aloud, and would've been flushed with embarrassment if she'd only known.  Taking this in stride, since this same person had hit him with a desk earlier, he turned around to find another place to eat.

            "She's still mad at me?" Ranma wondered to himself as he propped up against a tree.  "Well, fine…that tomboy can sit by herself for all I care!"  He dug into his food with a furrowed brow.  "'You want to be friends', she asks.  Yea, right," he grumbled through his food.  He sighed, "When can I get a break for once?  Where's Ryouga when I need to pound something…pig boy always getting himself lost at the worst time."  As he finished eating, his eye caught Nabiki and Kunou again.  "What are those two doing?  Ain't nothing good that's for sure."  Ranma walked off to throw away the bit of trash left from his food.

            Ranma left school as the bell rang signaling the end of classes for the day not really much in the mood to wait for Akane, or anyone else.  He debated whether to head back to the dojo just yet.  He decided to take a walk instead to clear his head.  He wasn't up for any deep thinking, just some aimless wandering.  Walking past the corner of Dr. Toufuu's clinic Ranma turned to head toward the city park for a change of pace.

            Akane paused at the front gate as her gaze swept the horde of students leaving Furinkan.  _Ranma, where are you?_  She had stopped by the infirmary before returning to class after lunch, but Ranma hadn't been there.  Since she only had the one class in the morning with him, she seldom saw him after lunch.  Still, they usually met up at the stairs when classes let out to walk home together.  She wondered for a moment if he were mad enough to just leave without her.  _He's been angry before, but he'd only resorted to taunting me all the way back to the house._

            She tried not to think much about that morning as she continued on her way home.  Even harder, was trying to deny the fact that she was worried and more than a little embarrassed at the way she had been acting around Ranma lately.  Admittedly, she felt something for the boy, usually categorized as anger towards him.  Then, when he acted the way he did sometimes, it drove her crazy.  She just wanted him to be a little more _expressive_, even if it meant beating that sentiment into him, which seemed to happen quite often.

            Up ahead, Akane could make out her home, not for the second time she thought that perhaps Ranma had arrived there before her.  Which, given his speed, was more than highly likely.  She felt oddly perturbed at the thought, which Akane attributed to the fact that he had left her to walk home by herself.  That gave her pause, _I'm that accustomed to Ranma's presence that it aggravates me when he is not there?_  Her own train of thought worried her so she derailed it.  A mental shift helped to derail it; _maybe I'll go into the backyard and practice a little_.

            Which is what Akane was doing twenty minutes later, clad in her white gi.  She found one advantage to her shorter hairstyle when she practiced.  Before the fight between Ryouga and Ranma, Akane had always had to tie her hair back to keep it from getting in her way when she trained or fought.  Even still, sweaty locks would eventually work their way into her eyes at inopportune times.  Now, though, she moved from form to form with practiced ease, if not as gracefully as some of the other martial artists in Nerima.

            Over at the park Ranma headed for an empty copse of trees to sit in the comfortable shade.  He still hadn't gotten any of his books back, though he now knew that Akane had them.  There was _some_ small comfort in that fact, better than having them stolen.  Vaguely, Ranma could remember just what had provoked Akane once again.  Yes, sometimes he was out of line, but he had never had much of a way with words.  Not to mention his inability to verbally express his feelings heaped onto it all.  He rolled his eyes, spoiling more than ever for an excuse to fight.

            Resting back against the tree, he slid down against the base to sit on the grass.  Looking up through the boughs overhead at the patches of blue sky he realized that he wasn't mad at Akane anymore, even if he was still just a little upset at himself.  He had failed to do something, and it infuriated him when he couldn't pinpoint what it was.  One hand clutched at a few thin blades of grass as he craned his head upward with a sigh.  Ranma closed his eyes for a moment of silence as warm shafts of light cascaded down across his face through the leaves up above.

            The reverie lasted perhaps ten minutes at most when a bellow split the air.  "RANMA, PREPARE TO DIEEE!"  Ranma really wasn't preparing to die, but a good workout was in order, especially if it was with Ryouga.  A second later Ranma was rolling forward away from the tree where three bandanas struck into the bark.  Springing to his feet from the crouching position he held, Ranma turned to face his opponent.  Ryouga was still a good twenty feet away, the usual enraged snarl pulling at the corners of his mouth.

            "I've seen untold horrors because of you Ranma.  I'll never forgive you for this torment I've endured!"  As he spoke, Ryouga continued to advance while unhooking a large umbrella from across the heavy pack that he wore.  "You die now!" Ryouga intoned with a swift dash forward across the intervening space.  Clods of grass and dirt exploded skyward when the tip of the umbrella speared into the earth in the space where Ranma had been waiting.  Snarling, Ryouga whipped the blunt weapon upward in an arc, trying to bludgeon Ranma's airborne form.

            "What're you whining about this time, P-chan?  I just saw you two days ago…man."  Ranma punctuated his remark as he rebounded from an overhead branch only to land nimbly onto Ryouga's outstretched umbrella.  A calculated flip from that precarious perch landed him just behind his opponent where he crouched. A foot lashed out to trip Ryouga, who anticipated the move by a fraction carting to the side and lancing his weapon out at Ranma's leg.  Neither adversary had much luck as of yet, and both jumped back, Ranma striking up a defensive posture and Ryouga reassessing a more promising venue of attack.

            "C'mon Ryouga, I ain't got all day now," Ranma tossed out another jibe hoping for a reaction.  Ryouga just smirked this time, his grin fading as he tossed aside the umbrella.  Ranma frowned wondering what was up, and as a thought clicked, he darted forward to close the distance.  Just then, a sickly green aura sprang up about Ryouga as his heavy ki formed into visibility.  "Oh no you don't…not here!"  Ranma launched a flurry of kicks aimed directly at Ryouga's chest.  The green field flared brightly when Ranma's sheer speed broke through Ryouga's defenses.

            "Argh, Ranma you'll regret this!  Shishi Hokodan!"  The ball generated by the powerful technique slammed forward into Ranma, who was able to weather most of the resulting blast.  Huffing, Ryouga charged the now dazed Ranma before he could react to adequately defend himself.  His body dashed into a tree by the force of Ryouga's raining blows and the breath left him.  Ranma dropped with a gasp to one knee to draw a breath and block the next set of attacks.  Wasting no time, Ryouga attacked within seconds and Ranma barely fended him off with a counter strike to his jaw.

            These battles never lasted long, especially as Ryouga was plainly intent on pushing the level up now.  Well, Ranma _had_ wanted to go at it, and now he got his wish, with interest.  Gathering himself up, he launched another flurry of punches and kicks at speeds resulting from his Kachuu Tenshin Amaguriken training.  Ryouga was pushed back several feet by the assault, though most of the furious blows fell far short of causing any real injury to the resilient traveler.

            An inarticulate roar escaped the lost boys throat as his aura flared dangerously.  Depression was setting in with each successful hit that Ranma landed on him.  "Curse you Ranma!"  He needed to get just far enough back to charge another Shishi Hokodan, so in this case a diversion was called for.  One hit caught him sharply in the ribs even as he was arching down for a Bakusai Tenketsu that would crack the ground to fell a nearby tree.  Rolling backwards to absorb some of the impact, Ryouga struck the ground with an outstretched finger.  His voice resounded through the warm afternoon air, "Bakusai Tenketsu!"

            With an energetic yell Akane shattered yet another cinderblock with her hand.  She had been at this for the better part of the afternoon, alternating between the bricks and a few katas.  Sweat collected in the cloth band circling her brow, which she wiped at every so often with the back of her hand.  Bit by bit, Akane felt the tension of the day drifting away as she worked out her frustrations on the cinderblocks.  Soon she stopped, pulling the headband off with a sigh.  _Ranma, why can't you ever just…_

            "SHISHI HOKODAN!"  The resulting spherical blast tore a wide swath through the nearby trees downing several of them in the process.  Ranma's attention was on avoiding the fallen tree due to the Bakusai Tenketsu that had just split the earth in a jagged crest.  The green ball flared out in the split second that Ranma was distracted, catching him off guard.  His careening body succeeded in missing the broken trunks, but he did not get off quite so lucky in the end.  Instead, Ranma landed with a harsh thud against several jutting rocks unearthed by the earlier attack.

            Cracking under the strain of impact, the rocks beneath gave way and his body slumped to the ruined sod.  Grimacing, Ranma tried to push himself to his feet with a lurch.  "Ryouga, what the hell was that?"  With a worn out cough Ranma made it to a standing position.  "C'mon we're not done just yet."  Even with those words out of his mouth, the stilted way he was standing gave Ranma away.  Ryouga just stared menacingly, a dark light flickering behind his eyes.    

            Sensing his goal within reach, the end nearing for this battle, Ryouga launched himself at Ranma with a feral growl.  "Akane will be mine.  Now you die Ranma!"

            The outburst gave Ranma a bit of pause, but he forced his body into a defensive stance at the last second.  "What are you babbling about now P-chan?"  "What does this have to do with Akane?"  He batted aside one of Ryouga's devastating punches.  It was getting easier to deflect the hits as Ryouga continued to rant and rage.

            "Akane will not be swayed by an enemy of women such as you Ranma!"  Several razor-edged bandanas whipped through the air a moment later.  Avoiding the whistling cloth, Ranma taunted his rival to goad him on.

            "What about when she finds out about 'P-chan'?  Think she'll want anythin' to do with you?"  Now the turnabout caught Ryouga for a second.  No part of that opening wasted as Ranma darted in close for a split second.  He landed a rapid succession of punches on the befuddled boy sending him reeling, a roundhouse kick catching Ryouga to the side of the head.  "Feh," Ranma took in a needed breath. "You haven't got a chance with Akane."  Despite that he thought that it was true; Ranma wondered why he even bothered stating it when Ryouga now out cold on the ground.

            "Just great, lousy timing as usual," Ranma complained to no one in particular as the sprinkler system in the park came on with a distinctive stutter.  "You'd think it'd have come on when Ryouga used that first Bakusai Tenketsu." He stood there as the heavy spray pelted him, and sighed deeply.  Moments later a tired, wet, and still irate redhead plopped down to sit on the ground near a little sleeping black pig amidst the ruined trees.  "This day started out good too.  It's all Akane's fault."

            "It's all Ranma's fault!"  That's what Akane had been about to say before she bit back her words.  Now was not the time to be bickering over something so petty as this.  Besides, amazingly Ranma actually had little or nothing to do with the current state of affairs at the Tendou household.  In fact, she had seen neither hide nor hair of him since before lunch.  Now that was something odd it was already near dinnertime and he was nowhere around.

            Nabiki was in a mood; well that's how it looked to Akane.  Being her sister and all made it possible to know when Nabiki bolstered the facade of nonchalance.  Some deal must've gone sour recently though the only one that might approach Nabiki about it would be Kasumi.  The few times Akane had tried, it didn't turn out so well.  Especially when she responded to her problems with anger and Nabiki just put up more walls.  Breaking those walls down was never a tactful solution in Akane's opinion.

            "Where has my disrespectful boy gone off to?  I swore that I'd make him a man, and look how he repays me."  Genma Saotome rubbed his glasses before putting them back on.  "Tomorrow we start training again, I'll beat some sense back into his head if need be!"  Somewhere in the middle of his little speech, Genma had risen from the table thrusting his fist in the air for emphasis.  He failed to notice the blank looks he was getting from the faces around the table.  A short cough from Souun brought Genma back into the present, where he lowered his arm sheepishly and sat down to eat.

            "Daddy, I think I'm going to my room for the night," Nabiki spoke quietly while massaging her temples, rising from the table without further ado.  Souun watched his daughter head up the stairs, and then  he leaned over toward Akane.

            "Is there something the matter with your sister Akane?  Doesn't have anything to do with a certain _Ranma_ does it?"  Before Akane even could think of a reply Genma interrupted bluntly as usual.

            "Souun, what has that boy done now?  I tell you…tomorrow he and I go on a training trip.  He'll be made into a man's man yet!"  The Saotome patriarch bowed his head in solemn vow.  "Boy, why do you bring such shame to me?"  A lone tear coursed slowly down Genma's cheek.

            Akane looked from her father to Ranma's, then imploringly over at Kasumi who was just sitting calmly, eating her food.  Kasumi may have been listening to the whole thing but it was just as hard to tell with her, as it would have been with Nabiki.  Not for the first time, Akane thought she must be with the wrong family.  She loved them all dearly, but things could get really uncomfortable around the house when everyone was here.  Except for the little fact that Ranma _still_ wasn't home yet and that bothered her.  _What trouble was he getting into now?_

Ranma's eyes fluttered open and his first thought was that his bed was really hard and _covered with grass_.  With a start, he sat up looking around for Ryouga, or P-chan, as might be the case since Ranma himself was still in his cursed female form.  "How long have I been out?"  He slid to his feet trying to dust off his ill-fitting clothes a bit, doing nothing for the tears and burns on his red shirt.  Another glance around proved two things, the first was that Ryouga was nowhere nearby piggy or otherwise, and the second was the fact that it was nightfall.  His stomach protested a third point _it was dinnertime too_.

            "Oh man, by the time I get back to the dojo, all the dinner will be gone."  He wasn't about to take a chance going to the Nekohanten, but Ucchan's was a safe bet.  "At least I know Uc-chan won't try to slip something into my food, and Okonomiyaki _does_ sound good right about now."  With that, Ranma gathered himself up and headed off to Ukyou's restaurant.  It wasn't far from the park; perhaps he could even snag some hot water on the way.  If not, well he was more than sure that Uc-chan would let him use her shower.

            One of very few plusses when it came to multiple fiancées when he absolutely had to ask for something, either Ukyou or Shampoo would be all too happy to oblige.  However that was something he preferred to avoid since it also encouraged those two in their efforts to get him into compromising positions.  With Akane around that sort of thing was hazardous to ones health.  Not that Uc-chan and Shampoo couldn't be as dangerous in their own right.  Any way Ranma looked at it showing up at Ucchan's in his current state was going to make dealing with the amorous chef tricky at best.

            Further proving to himself that this was not a lucky day, Ranma had not come across any hot water in the trek toward Ucchan's.  Sighing heavily he resigned himself to his fate as he rounded the corner to the restaurant, looking dejectedly at the wooden frame of the front entrance.  One hand reached up to push open the door, and Ranma poked his head inside for a quick sweep of the interior.  The glance was all he needed to assure that Ucchan's was devoid of patrons tonight.  _Oh well_, he thought, _never passed up a free meal before, so how bad can asking to use the shower be?_

            "Ran-chan, isn't it a little late to be stopping by?  Not that I mind, really."  Ukyou turned her head to see who had just walked in as she was cleaning some of the front tables.  She looked over the disheveled Ranma and hazarded a likely guess to herself.  _Another fight, but then they were martial artists after all, it was only natural that fights broke out_.

            "Yea, hi Uc-chan, I guess I kinda lost track of time when Ryouga…"  Ranma trailed off rubbing the back of his currently red hair with one hand.  "I was in the area, so I decided to stop by since it was closer than the dojo."

            "Ok sugar, did you want something to eat?"  Ukyou asked as a matter of habit.  She thought again for a moment before adding a comment offhandedly, "You look a little roughed up hon.  Want to talk about it?"

            Ranma figured that this was a safe direction to head in, since he felt he could rightly ask about that shower now.  "Uh, sure Uc-chan, but is there any way that I could get, you know, cleaned up first?"  Ukyou laughed after an almost non-existent pause.

            "Sure Ran-chan, my place is yours, you know that," she finished with a warm smile.  "Then you can come back downstairs and have dinner with me," Ukyou winked heartily.  This slow day was just beginning to pay off, in her opinion.

            A few minutes, and a good amount of hot water later Ranma walked down to the front counter where Ukyou was setting down two plates of Okonomiyaki.  Since there wasn't a change of clothes for suitable for Ranma here he had just cleaned his red Chinese shirt and pants as best he could, and put those back on.  There was a nagging moment of doubt in his mind, though once he caught sight of the food it was pushed to the side.  It wasn't so much that he liked Okonomiyaki, really he was just famished from the bout with Ryouga.  "Thanks, Uc-chan, for the shower.  It really made a world of difference."

            Ukyou watched Ranma dig into his food before she started on her own.  As silence continued its reign over the restaurant she thought of something that they could talk about.  She knew even idle chatter would suffice for now.  Ukyou wanted him to stay  longer than it took for him to finish eating.  With Ranma it was certainly a possibility that he would eat and leave, calling it a night.  "Ran-chan, who where you _playing_ with this time, hmm?"

            Ranma's brow lapsed into a furrow before he straightened his face and gave his reply.  "Had a run in with Ryouga again.  Said he was upset about some hell or another.  You know how he gets, or, how he is _all_ the time."  Ranma shrugged at the last, taking another bite of food.  "I was kinda hoping he had a real reason today, but nah…more of the same."

Ukyou made a small murmur in agreement, everyone knew how Ryouga was.  Ranma was right about one thing, nothing ever changed around here.  Sure there was the obligatory chaos now and then, although everything always dropped back into this twisted merry-go-round afterwards.  "You never told me what you were doing out this way so late sugar.  As much as I'd like to think it had something to do with me, I won't, unless you tell me otherwise," she flavored her words with a soft smile that lightly touched her cheeks.

"It's nuthin, like I said, Ryouga just keeping me out late."  From his mixed tone she could tell that there was more to it than what he claimed.  Then again, things with Ranma tended to be complicated one way or another.  With everything else considered, she was willing to bet that it had something to do with either Akane, or one of the _other_ girls chasing after Ukyou's Ran-chan.  Ukyou was surprised to see that he had not finished his Okonomiyaki yet, that in of itself was a sure sign that something was amiss.

Ranma picked at the remainder on his plate, waiting for Ukyou to ask him something that would be harder to brush off.  He knew that he wasn't his usual confident self at the moment.  Rare times like these were when people began to pry and prod at the walls he usually kept up around his emotions.  He had come here instead of going home since he knew that for the most part, he could count on Ukyou to just be a friend and leave certain things unsaid.  When she kept silent, Ranma knew that coming here was the right choice, tonight anyway.

_He usually comes to me with his problems, and this time is no different.  I guess he isn't ready to talk about it yet, and he might, no he _will_ leave if I try to drag it out of him.  It's been quiet in here all night, _I_ on the other hand need to hear something.  Even if it is the sound of my own voice, _that thought brought a wan smile to her lips.  "Ran-chan, I was thinking, maybe…"

Akane lay on her bed, looking to the ceiling at the shadows cast there from the moonlight coming in through the open window.  She was still worried over the fact that Ranma had never come back to the dojo since that morning.  Akane had stopped being mad at him over lunch and now she was torn between feeling wanting to be upset that her feelings didn't seem to matter to him, and wondering if he was alright.  _If he would just come back then I could get some sleep.  _She realized that it was really getting to her if it interfered with her sleep when he wasn't around.

Restless, Akane climbed out of bed and went to go downstairs for something to drink.  Moving to the darkened stairs, she wondered what time it was.  Everyone else was already asleep, or so it appeared to her.  Well worn steps creaked as she put her weight on them.  A hand found the side rail in the dark and she made her way quietly down to the kitchen.  Akane flicked on the light over the stove and turned to open the refrigerator to see what was left to drink, seeing as she didn't feel like water at the moment.

Pouring a glass of juice Akane sighed walking back into the living area.  She sat down on the couch, glass in hand. Akane wondered if she was actually listless, or just waiting up for Ranma to come home.  _Home, now that is a funny way of putting it.  Was he still free-loading with his father, or did he really live here now?_  Looking over her shoulder at a clock in the kitchen, she saw that it was almost midnight, _where was he?_

Ranma hopped over the stone wall that surrounded the backyard of the Tendou dojo.  His talk with Ukyou had ended taking much more time than he thought it would.  _Nearly six hours_, he chided himself mentally as he moved up to the sliding door that opened into the house.  He prayed that everyone was asleep, so they would think he had come back sooner than midnight, it was still a school night.  This was going to leave him with around five hours of sleep.  Assuming, that is, he could get to bed right away.

Pushing the door open with a faint wariness, Ranma looked around the living area.  As he stepped gingerly inside, he slipped his shoes off on the mat tiptoeing toward the stairs.  Something in the room caught his eye in the faint darkness, and he paused, turning to get a better look.  _Akane? What is she doing down here?_  Indeed, much to Ranma's chagrin, there sleeping on the couch was one Akane Tendou.  She was scrunched up into a ball, a pillow clutched tightly to her chest.

_Looks kinda cute laying there like that.  **Of course she does, she always looks cute, when she isn't trying to remove your head from your shoulders.**_  Ranma shook his head at the niggling voice.  He didn't need any help from his conscience at the moment, he was doing fine messing things up on his own.  _She doesn't look very comfortable, maybe I could pick her up and put her in her room._  _If she wakes up, she might get the wrong idea though.  **Or, maybe she might get the right one.**_

Ranma stepped around to the front of the couch while he debated the pro's and con's of carrying the sleeping Akane up to her room.  He avoided staring for too long at the way her hair fell lightly across her face as she murmured something inaudible, and rolled further to one side of the cushions.  Most likely he assumed she would haul back and slap him a good one if she woke up right now with him standing over her like this.  Idly, some part of him wondered if it would be worth the risk just to gently take her up in his arms and…_Cut that out! _Ranma nearly scolded himself aloud, when he realized what he had been thinking about doing just then._  She just looks so uneasy is all.  Can't a guy be nice once in a while?_

Up to this point, Ranma had avoided thinking about just why she was down here on the couch and not up in her room.  _She fell asleep watching something on TV_, he hazarded to himself.  **_Yeah, smooth one…TV's not even on._**  **_Besides, even if someone else came down and turned it off, you think they would have woken her, or took her upstairs themselves, right?  _**Ranma rubbed the back of his head, it was too late for this.  He was tired, sore and after that talk with Ukyou, feeling more than a little out of it.

"Ranma, where have you been," a tired voice asked with a yawn.

"I, uh, huh?"  he faltered when he realized that Akane was asking the question.  Looking back down at her he saw that she was not quite awake at the moment, since her eyes were still shuttered closed.  He waited for a minute to see if she was going to say, or do, anything else.  When she didn't open her eyes or hit him for not responding he figured she must still be asleep.  _I didn't know she talked in her sleep._

If he didn't make up his mind soon, he might as well sleep down here too since he could be standing here all night long debating.  _Ah, can't be that hard_, with that he slid one arm behind her neck and his other slipped under her thighs.  So situated, he lifted her up into his arms, readjusting to not awaken her in the transition.  _See, light as a feather, for someone that swims like a hammer._  His mind fell into old habit with one last undeserving jibe.

Quietly and carefully, Ranma walked around the couch with Akane secure in his arms.  He prayed that the steps wouldn't creak much under the combined weight, and moved to go upstairs.  Akane muttered something, but Ranma couldn't hear what it was since she had shifted slightly to nestle in closer to the warmth of his chest.  He made it the rest of the way up the stairs uneventfully, where he turned down the hall facing her room.  Akane didn't stir again as he carried her to her door, nudging it open with his foot.

It wasn't like he hadn't carried her before, only this time it felt different, a difference he was unable to put a fitting name to.  Stepping around the scant few objects on the floor, he moved across the room to her bed.  Holding his breath, Ranma lowered her down to the mattress, pushing back the covers before setting her all the way down.  Taking care no to move her too much, he pulled the sheets up to her chest and took a step back.  Satisfied she was settled in, he turned and walked out of the room, pulling the door closed after he left.

Wary of the others, Ranma crept over to his own room to get some much needed sleep.  When he was finally inside he slumped onto his bedroll and lay on his back.  For a few minutes he simply lay there, unmoving while his thoughts turned to the last half-hour.  He wasn't sure, but things could be changing around here.  Ranma just wanted to know if it was for the better, or for the worse.  With that in mind, he drifted off into a soundless slumber.

Early the next morning everyone was up and about getting ready for the day, with the exception of Ranma, who was valiantly trying to hoard as many extra minutes of sleep as he could.  Everyone had eaten by the time Ranma roused himself, and he was still just a little sore from the previous afternoon with Ryouga.  Stretching and grumbling to himself, he cleaned up and got dressed, heading to the kitchen.  He wanted to make sure that he had a decent lunch this time around, not like yesterday.  Kasumi smiled nonchalantly in her own way, handing Ranma food for lunch.

Only fifteen minutes prior to Ranma's departure from the realm of dreams, Akane had awoken.  She looked around at her surroundings, puzzled.  On the one hand she was pleased to be in her own room, and not have Kasumi or her Father find her sleeping on the couch downstairs.  That could've made a scene at the least.  On the other hand, she had no idea how she was back up here.  She did remember snippets of a strange, though pleasant dream.  More introspection was dashed aside when she got a look at the time, _I'm going to be late for class!_

Both Akane and Ranma rushed out the door to get to school at almost the same instant.  Nearly colliding, neither said much in the way of a curse, or apology, to the other, and they were off, running pell-mell down the side of the street. Though Ranma was a little farther ahead up on the fence, Akane found herself almost keeping pace.  _Is he tired, or running like this on purpose?_  Whatever the reason, she was grateful that he didn't leave her so far behind in their rush to get to class.  Normally they raced against each other to get to the front gate, but today they were just running and praying not to be tardy.

Lunchtime rolled around once again, this time Akane was relieved to see that Ranma had decided to sit with her.  She had thought that he would still be mad over yesterday.  After all, one could only take so much before it was enough.  Akane found that sentiment easy to agree with, and maybe Ranma did too since he had not once said anything to vex her today.  Which was pretty easy, considering he hadn't but spoken two words to her so far, and that had been earlier that morning before they left the house.  She supposed 'Morning, Akane' would have to do for now, since he had said it in a nice enough way.

Akane finished her lunch, watching Ranma do the same.  He still had not talked to her, so she was unsure whether or not to say anything.  She wanted him to say something, even if it was just to see if he was still mad about yesterday.  A silent Ranma was beginning to bother her now, but Akane didn't want to get mad over it.  Not right now anyway.  So, refraining from huffing, she gathered her books and rose to toss her garbage away.

Ranma watched Akane get up and walk away, he could tell she had something on her mind since she wasn't talking to him.  At the same time, he didn't want to disrupt whatever uneasy truce had been established, by uttering a condemning phrase.  He couldn't tell if this fragile break was a blessing or a curse.  Ranma got up as well, cleaning the remainder of the lunch from the table.  Tossing the paper sack away, he joined Akane and walked with her back to the main building.  Together, the two headed inside, each wondering for the hundredth time what the other was thinking about.

Chapter Two: Room for Doubt - Coming Soon 


	2. Room for Doubt

A Ranma ½ Fanfic by INABN

Original Ranma ½ Characters and Settings ©Rumiko Takahashi

Used without express permission.  

All characters not part of the Original Ranma ½ cast are property of INABN

Wasurenagusa Chapter Two: Room for Doubt 

            Akane looked up again at the clock on the classroom wall just above the door.  _Forty-five more minutes, this class is taking forever.  I just want to get home, is that too much to ask?_  Apparently, someone thought it was.  When the bell finally rang for the end of the day, Akane, along with a few other classmates, had to meet in the library for a group project.  "Great, just great…why'd he volunteer me for this stupid project.  I don't even like studying history," Akane grumbled to no one in particular as she walked into the library.

            Walking out of his class, Ranma looked around for Akane in the hall.  When he didn't find her after a minute or so, he figured that she might have already left for the front gate.  Mildly put off when he found out Akane wasn't there either, Ranma debated giving the place one last look.  Maybe she had to stay after for something.  Belatedly, he realized that he hadn't checked by her last class to see if she was still there.  _It's not like we've never had to stay after class before._

            Jogging back up the steps of the main building Ranma glanced around at the last of the students making their way out to head home.  _Just in case she was held up at the last minute,_ he told himself as he passed by a group of stragglers.  "Nope, she ain't with any of them," Ranma commented, pushing past to get inside the school.  For the most part, he wanted to go home, of course, he also wanted to talk to Akane about the last few days.  Taking the stairs two at a time, he reached the third floor in a few moments, where he turned down the hall toward her class.

            Akane just started dejectedly at the stack of books piled around the table she and the other four students were at.  The others were talking animatedly amongst themselves, though in tones reserved for the library, whereas Akane herself felt more than a little left out of the discussion.  Not for the second time, did she stop to think why the teacher had wanted her to be in this group.  Akane didn't care much for this kind of thing really.  She did reasonably well in class, but she wasn't the bookish type, in her own considerate opinion.

            Furthermore, Akane wasn't too familiar with the faces of those around her either.  There were few that she counted as close friends here at school, and none of these people were among that group.  Unfortunately, with the big 'date fights' that had encompassed her mornings at the start of the year, most everyone knew her, or knew _of_ her.  Then, to make things even more outlandish, Ranma's arrival had pushed her status to near legendary heights, which she had _never_ wanted.  A little popularity wasn't all bad, but when you felt that the entire school was watching your every move, things got a little scary. 

            Ranma had little luck in finding Akane at her classroom, she wasn't there for one, and neither was the teacher.  _No help here, where else could she be?  Let's see, most of the sports she is in are out of season now, so she probably isn't out by the field, or in the gym.  Where else would a tomboy like her be?  **Still a tomboy to you is she? **_Ignoring the errant thought, he continued to run a list of possible places Akane would go, or consider going to, on campus.  The list, as it were, was relatively short, so Ranma decided to eliminate each place one at a time.

            He was about to call it a day, and head back home, when he walked past the library catching sight of a couple groups of students gathered inside around various tables.  _Must be a study session or somethin'_.  Ranma had a hard time picturing Akane being a part of that sort of thing, that is until he noticed the familiar blue-black of her short hair amidst several other heads at one table.  From his vantage outside the library, he didn't have a view of her face.  Though the way she distanced herself from the others spoke volumes, it looked as if she wasn't enjoying the prospect of being there anymore that he thought she would.

            While the others continued to chat about the day, Akane was growing bored.  They hadn't been there more than twenty minutes, and already she wanted to leave.  The project was supposed to be about the founding of Furinkan, which was not all that long ago, and made for a really boring topic.  She sighed, tired of making an effort to listen to the conversation taking place.  Naturally, it didn't have anything to do with the project, the three girls and the lone boy were discussing gossip and who had crushes on whom.  The existence of potential relationships was not something she wanted to talk about at length right now.

            Just then, a tingle ran along the small hairs on the back of Akane's neck.  _Is someone staring at me?_  She glanced around the room at the people she could see, none of which made any eye contact with her.  She wasn't able to see everyone there due to the aisles of books in the way, but she didn't get the feeling that whoever was looking at her was close by.  _Where else could a person be, and still be watching me?  _That was when one of the others at the table said something to her.

            "Hey, what's up?  Something buggin' you Akane?"  the question came from the lone boy of the group, she thought his name was Tomoe.

            Akane shifted in her seat to face the others, "No, just thought I saw someone at one of the other tables."  Kimiko, one of the three girls across from Akane, nodded, resuming the conversation they had been having.  Tomoe cast another glance at Akane before he too was drawn back into the topic.  _This is ridiculous, we aren't going to get any work done like this.  Might as well have been an individual assignment with the way things are going._  Settling down into her chair, she started looking around when her neck prickled for the second time.  This time she made it less obvious so she wouldn't attract stares from the others again.

            Watching her from the window, Ranma stepped to the side when he saw her looking about the first time.  _Why am I hiding?  It's just Akane studying with some students_.  Peeking back around the corner of the window, he continued to watch her for a little while longer.  He figured she might take some time, and it was probably better just to leave her be and head home.  Naturally, this was the same time that Akane managed to spot who it was that had been staring at her.

            _Was that Ranma?  What is he doing here?_  "Excuse me, I'll be right back.  I need to go talk with someone," Akane told the others politely, as if they were actually listening to her anyway.  Absorbed in the current topic, no one noticed Akane as she gathered her books and left the table.  _As good a reason as any to get away from those four.  I can probably do better on this project by myself anyway.  _Akane hurried out of the library to see if she could catch up with Ranma before he left.

            Just as Akane reached the hall, Ranma had turned the corner up ahead, starting down the stairs.  _Now where did he go?_  "Ranma, wait up!"  Akane called out spotting a pig-tail whisking in the air for a second around the corner where the stairs were.  Hearing his name, he bent backwards on the first step to poke his head out of the stairwell.  _Akane must've seen me at the window.  Hmm, wanted to talk to her anyway, better late than never._  He straightened up when she saw him, and waited at the edge of the steps for her to catch up.

            When Akane saw his face as he leaned out from the stairs, she knew he had heard her, and ran to join him.  "Ranma, did you have to stay after class again?"

            "Um, no, I was just hanging around.  You weren't at the front, or in your last classroom.  So, I decided to look around for ya," he stated matter-of-factly.

            "Oh…My teacher assigned groups for a final project and we were supposed to meet in the library every day after school this week."  Akane supplied this as they started down to the ground floor.

            "You guys stop the meetin' early?"  Ranma inquired bluntly as usual.

            "N'no, I left since they were just talking about other things and not the project,"  Akane lowered her eyes briefly.

            "Yea, I bet."  Ranma hopped down to the ground, skipping the last ten steps.

            "Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"  Akane hurried down after him once again.

            "Wasn't s'posed to mean nothing Akane.  I just figured that they weren't going to be workin' on the project is all.  I mean, look who you were sittin' with."  Ranma tried vainly to pull his figurative foot from his mouth before Akane tried to make his literal foot fit there.  Apparently he was successful for the first time in who knows how long, since she actually seemed to calm down at his hastily supplied words.

            "You're right, I don't know why I was put in a group with those four."  Ranma was taken aback at the admission, _since when has she ever said I was right like that?_  Maybe he was onto something here, and being who he was, he decided to press his luck just a little more.

            "Dunno, maybe you were there to make sure they did their work for a change?"  Inwardly Ranma cringed, _that didn't come out like I planned._  He could just see her taking that statement to mean she was a gorilla, or something put in the group to enforce the others.  He waited but the furious raining blows never came.  Ranma didn't realize he had closed his eyes until Akane's voice broke his line of thought.

            "Are you going to stand there all day?  Seriously Ranma, you look really weird.  Why are you hunched over like that?"  Quickly he stood up, rubbing the back of his head with one hand in embarrassment.  _Here I thought she was going to lay me out again._  "Come on Ranma, I'm getting hungry.  You can buy me something to eat on the way home."

            "Hey!  Who's buying what?  What are you talking about Akane?"  Ranma ran up to Akane, who was already walking toward the front gate.

            "Like I said, you can buy me something to eat while we walk home."  Akane spoke cheerily.  "Maybe some ice cream or…"

            "That all you think I'm good for?  Buying food?"  He pretended to sound hurt.  Though he was low on cash, he was in the mood for a snack too.  Without looking back, Akane almost missed the lightness of his tone, and this time was about to turn and smack him one with her book bag.  Instead, she laughed and did turn around, walking backwards for a moment to talk.

            "Well, maybe you don't have to buy it after all.  We could always find some cold water."

            "Don't joke like that Akane,"  Ranma's eyes darted around, searching for something that could splash him.  It was hard enough avoiding the stuff, without it being summoned by name.  Walking out of the campus grounds, they turned to cross the street and find a place to get some ice cream.  "Where do you want to go Akane?"

            "I want a sundae, so I guess anyplace with those is fine," she told him before turning to face forward again.  Ranma stilled the urge to walk along the fence, and remained just behind Akane until they reached the main street that the stores ran along.  Akane spotted where she wanted to go immediately, and reached back to tug on Ranma's arm.  "There is a good place, hurry Ranma, it looks like a line is forming!"  Sure enough, about five people walked through the door to the small ice cream parlor before Akane and Ranma managed to cross the street.

            Eight minutes, and one severely depleted  wallet later, the two were sitting at a table by the window facing out to the sidewalk.  Each had a sundae in various states of being leisurely consumed.  _This is nice, Ranma hasn't said one mean thing and he even paid for the sundaes without another word._  _Something's going to happen, nothing good ever lasts this long around here._  Ranma looked across the table at Akane, who was obviously thinking along the same lines as he was.  Ranma was just about to give voice to his thoughts when something blocked the sunlight streaming in through the window.  Turning to look, Ranma came face to face with something…nauseating.

            Kunou had gone out after class to purchase a new set of bokkens from a reputable dealer that he often did business with over various matters.  Walking along with his wrapped swords slung over his shoulder, he crossed the street to head back to his estate.  What he had not been expecting to see was a certain Saotome sitting with one Akane Tendou.  _My fair Akane, has that wrench bewitched you in some manner?_  Spotting what they were doing his thoughts continued their misguided turns.  _I see it now, he has ensnared you by enticing you with your favorite iced cream, having drugged it beforehand.  _Why Kunou thought that a Sundae was her favorite ice cream, one will never know.

            Approaching the fine establishment, Kunou stood by the window in front of the pair and leered down at Ranma.  He would shatter the will of the nefarious Ranma Saotome with his righteous gaze alone.  After a second, Ranma finally looked over at Kunou…and turned an interesting shade of green instead of breaking down as Kunou had hoped.  It was time to change his tactics and directly challenge the fiend.  For his skill with the sword was without peer in Nerima.  "Saotome, I formally challenge you for the beauteous Akane.  Release your hold on her and come fight me!"

            Back inside the parlor, Akane and Ranma sat speechless, staring at Kunou as he made several dramatic poses, all the while his mouth moved silently.  They guessed that the glass was thicker than his head, so they couldn't hear him at all from where they were.  "What do you think he is doing Ranma?"

            "Beats me, probably going on about his blue thundered-ness again," Ranma snorted in irritation as Kunou continued to rant outside.

            "How long is he going to stay out there you think?"  Akane asked again, trying to finish her sundae.  She looked at Ranma to avoid having to watch Kunou's ongoing display.  His antics were attracting the attention of the other customers now, who were starting to complain about the lunatic outside the shop.  Kunou noticed the effect his challenge was having, and since those he wanted to see him, were ignoring him, he decided to go inside and directly issue his declaration.  With that, he walked to the door and went in.

            "Oh man, he actually came inside," moaned Ranma, who was in a position to face the door.  Ranma was about to stand up and see what was going on, when Akane motioned him back down.  "I can handle him Akane, why'd?"

            "Just ignore Kunou, Ranma, please?"  She interrupted his question with her own plea.

            "Ok, I'll try, but you know how annoying he can be.  So if it comes down to it, I'll handle things my way…outside of the shop," he rapidly added that last part so she would agree with him.  However the next words that Kunou uttered as he came to stand by them changed the situation dramatically.  Things were about to go from simply annoying, to very bad, for Ranma that is.

            "Ranma, how dare you date with Akane!"  Kunou thundered out loud, giving some truth to his self-declared title.  This caught Ranma completely off-guard and he stuttered those condemning words of his own.

            "D-date?  This ain't a date Kunou," which wasn't the bad thing, but he kept talking and time seemed to slow.  "Why would _I _date a tomboy like her?"  _Damn, I didn't just say what I think I said.  _From the stricken look on Akane's face, he must've done just that.  Kunou of course, was oblivious to the effect that Ranma's words had on the girl, and was determined to fight Ranma for her _freedom_.  Ranma was busy watching Akane's face tear up, and didn't hear the words _we fight now _come from Kunou.  Nor did he see the incoming flash of purple heartwood, but he did however, feel the bokken smack into his head.

            When Akane heard Ranma say those words, her immediate reaction was wanting to do three things simultaneously.  The first, she was doing, which was crying.  The second thing was to beat Ranma senseless for being so uncaring.  That was taken from her when Kunou did it instead, though not for the same reason.  The last thing she wanted to do, was run home.  And now she didn't feel much like that, given the fact that Ranma was unconscious _and_ bleeding profusely from a wound in his scalp line.  Ranma had also cracked his head on the faux marble tabletop when he was knocked out.

            Kunou on the other hand was feeling radiant.  He had succeeded at long last in smiting his opponent, in one mighty blow no less!  Now there would be nothing to stand between him and his beloved Akane…there it was already, the sweet sound of her voice, calling to him, to _him_!

            "Kunou!  Kunou, help me pick him up, he's heavy you idiot!"  Akane only received a look of undisguised passion from Kunou, so she decided he needed a reality check, cashed with her foot.  "Snap out of it, he's hurt badly and it's your fault.  Help me get him to Dr. Toufuu's."  Kunou only managed a weak nod in return.  _She must still be under his influence…she has dealt me a mighty blow._  Satisfied with the effect her kick had on him, Akane stood up trying to pick Ranma up from his seat.

            When they finally reached the clinic, Akane called for Dr. Toufuu to come and take Ranma from them.  Kunou decided to remain in the waiting room since he _had_ been the one to injure Ranma, even if he thought Saotome deserved no less.  Akane followed the doctor into the patient room to find out the extent of Ranma's injury.  "How is he Doctor?  I think Kunou hit him pretty hard, and Ranma wasn't quite ready for the attack."

            "You don't say?  Ranma wasn't ready for Tatewaki?"

            "Um, I may have sort of distracted him, on accident," came Akane's embarrassed reply.  She fidgeted in the seat she had taken while waiting for the prognosis.  Toufuu took his time in fully examining the prostrate boy.  After lifting his eyelids, he determined that Ranma was suffering a slight concussion, hopefully nothing more.  But, to be sure he needed to wake him.

            "Akane, would you hand me one of the green bottles in that cabinet over there?" Toufuu pointed out a long cabinet on the far wall.  Akane looked to where he indicated and nodded that she would.

            "You mean this one?"  Akane walked back over, handing a small capsule to Toufuu who took it in hand.

"Yes, this is the one.  I hardly use these, but smelling spirits do come in handy once in a while."  Opening the capsule, he held it under Ranma's nose for a moment until the boy winced, coughing.  "You see, works wonders sometimes."  Ranma painfully opened his eyes, and tried to sit up.  "Ranma, lay back down, I still have to make sure you don't have more than a minor concussion."  Moaning incoherently, he did as Dr. Toufuu told him too, resting his head back against the pillow.

            "What happened?"  Ranma managed to get that much out clearly.  He said a few other things, none of which either Akane or Toufuu could make out.

            "Kunou, he hit you pretty hard with his bokken, then you fell forward and knocked yourself on the table," Akane told him as she moved her chair next to the bed.  Toufuu watched them for a moment before he made to leave the room.  "Where are you going?"  Toufuu turned at her words.

            "I'm going to get a few books on head injuries.  I need some more information.  He should be fine for now, but give me a call if anything unusual happens."  That said, he left for the front.  He hadn't told Akane, but he saw that Ranma was going to be alright in a few days, perhaps sooner given the boy's remarkable ability to recover from injury.  The real reason he had left was to leave the two of them alone, and to have a _word_ with Tatewaki concerning his earlier actions.

            Akane watched Toufuu leave before she turned back to face Ranma again.  He looked a little pale, but other than the bandage on his forehead, none the worse for wear.  He seemed about to say something, but had a bit of trouble getting the words out.  She didn't know if it was due to his condition, or what he was trying to say.  "Ranma, what is it?"  Akane was a little, well more than just a little, upset with him over what he had said back at the shop.  But, she was trying to hold back those kind of thoughts since Ranma was actually hurt this time.

            "I'm sorry, Akane."  At first she thought that it was wishful thinking and that he hadn't really spoken.  Then she glanced at his face, and the expression she read there was enough to convince her otherwise.  "I-I didn't mean what I said to Kunou about you."  As hard as it was for her to hear words like that coming from the _great_ Ranma Saotome, Akane realized how difficult it must be for him to express such feelings.  Even more, to say it directly to her.  Well, as direct as one could, laying flat on their back.

            "I believe you Ranma, and I'm sorry too.  Kunou wouldn't have hit you if it weren't for me."  Now it was her turn to feel awkward, for the second time that day she had acted unselfishly in something relating to Ranma.  Letting his remark slide about her making the others do their work in the group had been hard.  But, when she had spun about instinctively, only to see Ranma shying away, nearly folded in on himself, it had spoken volumes to her about their relationship.  It was seriously wrong when nearly everything he said and did made her act out physically.

            Akane knew that Ranma was an honest person, sometimes brutally so.  However, that was no reason to hurt him.  She didn't really want to hurt anybody, it just didn't help that Ranma never took her seriously for a change.  **_That's not true, he's been treating you rather well the past two days._**  _I've been trying too, you know.  _Her conscience didn't respond to that one.  It was a little strange that they had not been talking to each other that much, Akane mused.  That was one reason that they hadn't been fighting.

            "Earth to Akane, Akane, hello?"  A weak chuckle escaped Ranma's lips along with his faint calls.  Akane finally acknowledged him as she shook her head and gave a light smile.  "What were you thinking about?  Seemed so serious."

            "Just the last couple of days, they've been a little, different."

            "Different?  How, like different _good_, or different _bad_?  Ranma tried to figure out what exactly she was talking about.  Sure a few things had changed, especially between the two of them.  And, for the record, Ranma wanted to know what had happened.  At his question, Akane was starting to really think about what was going on.  Ranma watched in anticipation, waiting for whatever answer she would give.  His head throbbed faintly as he concentrated on her features, searching for a hint as to what she was thinking.

            She knew that part of the reason they were even able to talk like this was the fact that Shampoo had been taken back to China, along with Mousse.  Cologne mentioned something about an extensive training regimen, and simply left Japan with those two a few days back.  In addition, the thing that kept Ukyou to her restaurant, was the upcoming summer break.  Kids were staying out later, and getting ready for the semester to end.  Ucchan's was receiving more business because of that, hence Ukyou was occupied running the place by herself.

            "It's been a little strange, without Shampoo and some of the others running about all over the place."  Akane was loath to actually name the perky Amazon when she wasn't around.  It was bad luck, pure and simple.  A half-hearted grin erupted from her lips when she thought of the irony.  She was a glutton for misery if she kept things like this up, first talking about the water with Ranma, or lack-there-of.  Now, here she was, trying to invoke more troubles.  _Am I that uncomfortable with just Ranma around, that I actually want something to interfere?_

            Furrowing his brow, Ranma wondered what she was getting at.  _Is she trying to change the subject?_  _Maybe this is one time I can safely be direct.  I hope it is, or else I'm gonna get it for sure._  "Akane, for real, what is going on here?  I want, no – I _need_ to know."  Ranma put as much strength to his voice as he felt he could in his weakened state.  He kept his tone warm, more of a plea than a demand.  _Hope I don't sound weak.  Can't believe I let Kunou get such a good hit in._  Ranma winced inwardly at using 'Kunou' and 'good' in the same sentence, even mentally.

            Akane was now at a loss, not that she hadn't felt so before, but this time she knew it inside_.  How can I tell him that I feel the same way?  We've hurt each other so often before.  He's so insensitive most of the time, I don't know what to do when things are like this._  Ranma was getting worried as she didn't answer him.  As it was, Akane looked to be on the verge of tears.  _Was it because of what I said?  Am I supposed to apologize?  Augh, why can't I understand women better, I'm one half of the time as it is!_

            Ranma spoke to Akane, softer this time, "It's been nice you know."  He trailed off at the end when a brief flash of pain arced through his head.

            "What's been nice?"  Now she was the one that wanted to know a little more.  When Ranma's head cleared he finished what he had  been about to say.

            "It's been nice, not fighting like we used to.  I just want to…" Ranma was interrupted by Akane hastily interjecting her sentiment while she still had the courage to face him, even just a little.

            "I'm sorry for how I've been treating you Ranma,"  the words came out meekly and a tad rushed.  It barely had the chance to register with Ranma, as he finished his own sentence.

            "..say I'm sorry."  As both the statements faded into the air, the only thing remaining was an uncomfortable silence.  Ranma started to say something else, but the sudden reappearance of Doctor Toufuu shattered the moment.  As it was, Ranma smacked the back of his head against the wall in surprise, while Akane sat up straight in the chair.

            "Ah, Ranma feeling better are you?"  Toufuu chuckled to himself, he hadn't meant to interrupt them in the middle of anything.  However, this was a clinic, and he had another patient to tend to.  "I just need to get something for Mrs. Kagure, her back has been acting up again."  So saying, the doctor was gone as suddenly as he arrived, leaving the two alone once again.  Unfortunately, they were not only nervous now, but embarrassed as well.  Ranma managed to sit up, rubbing the back of his head both in embarrassment, and because it was incredibly sore from striking the wall.

            "So, you started to say something Ranma?"  Akane tried to shift the conversation back.  It felt strange wanting to know what he had been about to say.  _I'm starting to feel a little light-headed myself_, she thought while waiting for him to speak.  Her vision doubled for a second, and she blinked to clear it.  Watching her from the bed, Ranma struggled to rearrange his thoughts back to where they had been prior to Toufuu's entrance.  Neither of them noticed the small vase wobbling unsteadily at the edge of a shelf near the head of the bed.

            "I-I-eee…," came a shriek as the cold vase water spilled down Ranma's back.  The redhead shot a glare upwards at whatever had gotten her wet.  Not the best choice, since the vase itself chose that moment to slip from the shelf and land smack dab into the upturned face below.  The whole scene had startled Akane just as much, who watched her fiancée slump back onto the pillow, unconscious.  She didn't think it was good for him to go back to sleep with a concussion, especially if he was bleeding again.  Akane did the only thing she could think of and called for Doctor Toufuu as she lifted the vase from a battered Ranma.

            After dinner Akane went up to her room, plopping down on the bed to think.  Dr. Toufuu had told her that Ranma could go home and he would be fine in the morning if he refrained from anything strenuous.  She knew he recovered fast, but it was going to be hard to keep him out of trouble.  _Good thing it's the weekend, and there is no school tomorrow.  He can just rest and take it easy…well that's what he should do anyway.  _Akane sat up and looked out her window across the rooftops lit by the moon.

            She kept expecting Ranma to suddenly appear at the window, handing from the eaves as usual.  He hadn't done that in a long time, though he used to do it all the time when she was feeling upset.  It wasn't likely to happen tonight either, since she knew he was sleeping soundly in his room.  She had carried him home from the clinic while he was still in his female form.  He never once woke up, and remained sleeping in his room, even through dinner.  As far as she knew, he was going to sleep all night.

            Sighing, Akane lay back down, curling up against her pillow.  Her thoughts turned back to when she had been alone with Ranma in the clinic.  _What had he been going to say?  This is going to drive me crazy, but…  He was hit in the head pretty hard, maybe he wasn't thinking clearly.  At least I know he meant what he said about being sorry.  He seemed so sincere, like when we first met.  _She remembered asking him if they could be friends, even if he _had_ been a girl at the time.

            _Just look at how things turned out.  Shampoo decides to come along when things are beginning to settle down, then Kodachi and Ukyou.  I know that Ukyou and I can be friends, even if we are rivals._  That particular line stalled her for a fraction of time. _ Are we really rivals? That would mean, **you've been fighting over Ranma this whole time.  **_Akane rolled onto her side, sitting up when her cheek hit something wet.  Looking down she saw little drops scattered over her pillow.  Wiping at her eyes, she lay back down, only to tear up again.

            Downstairs, Nabiki sat on the couch, still slightly pissed at what Kunou had told her yesterday.  _I'm getting sick and tired of that boy's thick head.  He would never learn, and so what if it nets me a little cash, it's just not worth the headache.  **What do you mean, not worth it?  It's money isn't it?  **She knew she had a point, but still…the idiot was insufferable.  _Nabiki fumed briefly, before calming herself.  _I'll just go shopping with Kasumi tomorrow.  That'll make me feel better._  Calm and collected, she turned on the TV to see if anything was on the news.

            Souun and Genma continued their ongoing game of Shogi late into the night, neither one ever really gaining the upper hand.  Thusly, they sat in the corner by the door to the back porch, blissfully unaware of the problems that their children faced.  "Ah hah, good one Tendou!  But, take this!"  Genma chuckled as he moved a piece in what he considered a winning play.  His grin crumpled a second later, as Souun made the same move on his side of the board…the game was evenly matched, for the night.

            "Saotome!  I won't let you win so easily!"  Souun teared up as his brilliance astounded even himself.

            On his pallet, Ranma stirred uneasily in the throes of a dream.  Not wanting to disturb him, Akane and the others had left him in his female form until he woke.  Ranma was caught up in his sheets due to the increasingly turbulent dream, and his struggle didn't go unnoticed.  Perched on the shuttered window, a small bird watched the thrashing figure with animal intensity.  The little bird remained for some time, before a particularly strenuous portion of the nightmare caused Ranma to call out in his sleep.  With that, the bird flew off in search of a more peaceful environment to rest in.

            Sunlight streamed through the open window, splaying across Ranma's face as he slept.  Eyes flickering slightly, he winced at the offending light, trying to wave it away with a flopping hand.  "go, 'way," Ranma muttered at the dust motes floating in the bright rays.  _Something isn't right here…wait a minute_, Ranma snapped awake and he sat up with a lurch.  Bleary eyed, he scratched his head and took a look at his hand in the process, his much _smaller_ hand.  "What the hell?  I slept the night as a girl?"  _Sure, I've taken naps before, but spending a whole night this way?_

            Ranma pushed open his door, and stumbled down the hall into the bathroom.  He looked into the mirror, and blinked.  "Eh?  Oh, I remember now, that idiot Kunou…What's this from though?"  Ranma ran a hand across a circular purple bruise that covered the left side of his face.  "Isn't this cute.  Better get changed back."  A lovely thought, but not a practical one, as Ranma's headache resurfaced and he wobbled unsteadily over to the wall.  Holding his hand out for support, he shook his head to clear it.  Red hair tossed about, but moving like that only made it worse.

            The door opened behind Ranma, and he tried to turn around, only succeeding in slumping to the floor.  Akane stepped into the bathroom and gasped when she saw the condition Ranma was in.  "What do you think you're doing?  Go lay back down, Dr. Toufuu said you weren't supposed to do anything today."

            "I'm fine Akane, just need to take a bath…be fine after that,"  Ranma declared, attempting to regain his feet.  This proved to be a problem on the tile floor, and he ended up slipping and nearly going through the screen door.

            "You're going to make it worse if you don't settle down.  Here, let me help you back to your room.  Kasumi made breakfast, you can eat it in there."

            "Come on Akane, let me get some hot water, can't I do that much?"

"No, you can hardly even stand.  I'll do it for you,"  As she spoke, she opened the screen door to the rest of the bathroom and carefully dragged Ranma inside.  Ranma let himself be pulled, not that he had much choice, until he thought about the situation.

            "You're just gonna splash me right?  I mean, um."  Ranma asked, somewhat concerned.  Akane blushed beet red at his question, stammering out her answer.

            "What did you think Ranma?  I'm not going to wash you!"

            "Oh, ok…just so we were clear on that," Ranma dropped onto the wooden stool so she could dose him.  _What was I thinking, asking something like that, of course she wasn't going to try and give me a bath._  Ranma looked down at himself.  _Man my clothes are going to get soaked.  She won't mind if I take of my shirt, not like she hasn't seen me before._  As Akane turned to get a bucket of warm water, Ranma shucked his shirt, tossing it aside at the hamper past the screen.  Stretching his arms, Ranma waited for Akane to get the water warm enough to change him back into his male body.

            Akane shut off the water, lifting the small bucket of water over the edge of the bath.  Facing Ranma her eyes widened and she nearly dropped the bucket right then.  "Ranma, wh-what are you doing?"  She almost threw the water at him, bucket and all, when she remembered that he was already hurt enough as it was.  Ranma looked up wearily at Akane, puzzled.

            "Didn't want to get my clothes wet."  At his reply, Akane sputtered.  "Oh, what is it Akane?  I still have my boxers on…sheesh, I'm not stupid you know."  Akane was still trying to figure out what to say when Ranma rolled his eyes.  "Look, just splash me and I'll be back to normal.  And, stop staring at me like that!"  This got Akane's attention, and she flushed, swinging the bucket. "Hey, augh, don't let go of the buc-…"

            The water splashed across the tile, Ranma was soaked, and now lying on his back with the bucket rolling next to his head.  "Oh, Ranma, I didn't mean to."  Akane rushed over to his side and lifted his head to see if he was conscious.  Which he was, by a thread.  The bucket had broad sided him just after the water hit.  Along with the purple bruise from the vase, he was going to have a yellow one on his cheek from the bucket.  "I'm sorry Ranma, but you said I was staring, and I didn't think.  I didn't mean to hit you again, I promise."

            "S'ok 'kane…jush leggo my faysh."  Ranma whined, dazed, through puffy cheeks.

            "Oh, o-ok." She nearly dropped his head to the ground, but lifted him up at the last second.  "Should I dry you off?"  Ranma nearly cringed at the thought…she bludgeoned him just getting him wet.  _What is she going to do to me if she has a towel?_

            "No, no…just ah, help me get into bed…I don't feel good at all.  I think I'm gonna be…"  He started to turn a certain shade of green and Akane backed up, letting him go.  She turned her head away when he threw up on the tile.  "…sick.  Damn, I don't feel good right now."  He retched again, only dry heaving this time.  Akane's shoulders started to shake, and Ranma pushed himself up, glancing over at her.  "Akane…you sick too?"  She made a small sound, which didn't remind Ranma of someone getting nauseous.  "Akane?"

            She spun around, ignoring the mess on the floor, focusing instead on Ranma's battered face.  Tears were flowing down her cheeks, and her eyes were rimmed in red.  She tried to speak clearly, but her chest constricted with heavy sobs.  "I-I'm s-s-or-rh-hyy, R-ra-n-nma.  It's a-al-l, mu-h-my f-fault."  She took a small step toward him, and then without  warning, bolted out of the room and up the stairs to her room.  Ranma sat there, too stunned and weary to do anything but call out softly, "wait, Akane, it's not your fault."

            Hearing the door slam upstairs, Nabiki went to go and check on her sister and find out what was wrong.  "This better not be Ranma's doing.  I haven't had the chance to get out of the house yet.  I'll be damned if my day is ruined because of that jerk.  Kunou is one thing, but Ranma lives here.  He should know better by now."  Knocking lightly on her sisters door, Nabiki stood back and waited for an answer.  

She was rewarded with a muffled, "Go 'way,  Le-eave me-e alone".  _Great, she's crying.  Where's Ranma?_  "Want to talk about it 'sis?"  

            "No, go away."  Akane said through the door, finally getting her sobs under control.  Nabiki frowned, she usually was able to at least get inside and talk to Akane.  _I'll find Ranma instead then._

            "Alright, Akane…but if you want to talk later, Kasumi and I will be downstairs."  _Probably killing Ranma, that is._  With that, Nabiki stormed down the stairs intent on dragging Ranma to his fate, _I don't care how hurt he is, he can't keep treating Akane like this._  She went down the hall to Ranma's room, thinking vengeful thoughts.  She threw open the door to his room, fully expecting him to be inside…and not finding him there.  Frustrated, she wondered if he may have already run off in shame.  _Not very likely.  Couldn't make things that easy, could you Ranma?_  "Where are you, Ranma?  Stop hiding and come out!"

Ranma heard Nabiki out in the hall, she sounded more than a little upset about something.  He hadn't really ever heard her get angry before, and it certainly wasn't doing anything for his current mood.  Tired, weak and sick to his stomach, he wasn't up to any kind of abuse right now.  He most certainly wasn't going to get up and shout to the world where he was at right now.  _Besides, I'm _not_ hiding, I can hardly move on my own as it is._  At the moment he wished he could move more than a few inches, he was still far too close to his own vomit for his liking.

While Nabiki searched for her quarry downstairs, and Ranma struggled in the washroom, Akane sat at her desk, looking through various pictures taken over the past few months that Ranma had been here.  Most of the photos depicted happy moments, even if some of them were pure chaos seconds after the shutter snapped.  A weak smile crossed her lips when she looked back on those times. She still couldn't figure out what was going on between her and Ranma recently.  _Ranma, oh god, what was I thinking?  I left him down there all alone!  He can't even get himself out of the bathroom!  And, Nabiki was just at the door, she doesn't think Ranma…?_

Throwing her door open, she looked around for Nabiki, "Nabiki?  Nabiki?"  _No good…where is she?_  Akane rushed downstairs, nearly tripping herself in the process.  _I have to get to Ranma!  _Once she made it down, Akane looked around for Nabiki.  Shaking her head, she ran to the bathroom looking quickly inside, "Ranma!"

Chapter Three: Lost Moments - Coming soon


	3. Lost Moments

A Ranma ½ Fanfic by INABN

Original Ranma ½ Characters and Settings ©Rumiko Takahashi

Used without express permission.  

All characters not part of the Original Ranma ½ cast are property of INABN

Author's notes: My first official notes here people.  Onto the  first order of business;  Yes, I realize I made Ranma a little weaker in respect to the Anime.  Truthfully, I prefer the Manga version so I am keeping to that.  That also considered, Ranma is weaker than his Manga counterpart as well – this is for dramatic purposes.  Note the _Drama/Romance_ on the website description of this story.  Actually, that was really the only order of business, so without further ado I present the third installment to Ranma ½ …

Wasurenagusa Chapter Three: Lost Moments 

            With a weary creak, the front gate of the Kunou estate yielded to Tatewaki's insistent push.  "Saotome, you have besmirched my honor for the last time.  I will have my vengeance!  Swift and sure will be the hand of justice!"  Kunou shouted to the open gate.  It made no comment.  "But first…I must take a rest, that doctor Toufuu can be most _persuasive_."  With that, he brushed past into the yard, heading up the path to go inside.  _And to think, I nearly vanquished Saotome.  A trying day this has been indeed._

            Back at the Tendou home, one Nabiki Tendou was systematically working her way over the lower floor starting from the back yard, in her search for Ranma.  "I know you don't run away from fights Ranma, so come out."  _Gah, where can he be?  This is giving me a headache.  Maybe he did leave already.  Well, he has to come back sometime.  I'll go see if Akane is ready to talk._  She headed back inside and walked into the kitchen to ask Kasumi if Akane had come out of her room.

            Just past the stairs, Akane was helping a very ill Ranma back into his room.  "Just a little further Ranma, then I'll go ask Kasumi to make you something to drink.  You've lost a lot of fluids already."  Ranma just nodded as she lowered him onto the pallet.  He didn't look good, and his skin was drawn and pale.  "I'll be right back, ok?"  _Maybe I can find Nabiki too, just to keep her off his back.  That's the last thing he needs right now._  Down the hall, Akane could hear her sisters talking in the kitchen.  _Good, they are already together._

Nabiki was busy in conversation with Kasumi as Akane walked into the kitchen.  She only had a moment to realize they were talking about her before Kasumi turned her head and smiled at her.  "Akane, Nabiki said you were upstairs crying.  Whatever is the matter?"

            "It's something Ranma did, isn't it?"  Nabiki cut in before Akane could even respond.  "You can tell us what happened."  Akane fidgeted slightly under the scrutiny Nabiki was giving her.

            "It's not like that Nabiki.  It wasn't Ranma's fault at all."

            "What do you mean?  Who made you cry then?  It was Kunou, wasn't it?"  Nabiki had trouble reigning in her accusations in light of the other day.

            "K-Kunou?  He doesn't even come around here, you know that Nabiki.  Now you're just jumping to conclusions."  Akane was surprised at her sister, she didn't usually act like this.  Something was up for sure.  "I didn't mean to worry either of you, but I'm better, really."  

            "Are you sure?  Where is Ranma anyway,"  Nabiki narrowed her eyes.  "I looked everywhere for him."  Nabiki still had an aura of suspicion around her.  Akane was going to tell her that he was in his room, but turned to Kasumi instead.  Kasumi watched the little exchange with some interest, then brightened visibly when Akane turned to her.  Kasumi could tell when a situation had changed for the better, and placed her full attention on her youngest sister.

            "Kasumi,"  Akane began.  "Could you make something for Ranma to drink.  He's been really sick and I think he might be able to keep something liquid down."  Kasumi nodded, thinking she should probably take a look at him first.  They might have to call Dr. Toufuu over if he looked too sick.  Akane had told them about the incident with Kunou, though Kasumi thought her sister had left a few things out.  She wasn't positive, but it seemed likely given the way the two had been acting around each other lately.

            "Ranma's sick?"  Nabiki sounded dubious, even though she had watched Akane carry him in last night.  "He wasn't in his room, so where was he then?"

            "If you must know, he was in the bathroom, and if you don't believe me, go look at the floor."  Akane told her sister with a little vehemence.  She was getting tired of Nabiki acting like this.  It wasn't natural for her sister to be this way, not right now anyway.  A little suspicion was one thing, but near outright hostility?  "Go on, go take a look for yourself!"  Akane fumed when Nabiki just arched a brow.

            "Fine, since you insist," Nabiki snorted, walking out of the kitchen.  She had no intention of looking in any bathroom.  Though, she _was_ going to take a quick peek in Ranma's room, just to be sure.  As Nabiki walked off, Akane slowly let out a breath in frustration.  _If it wasn't one thing…_She instantly calmed down when she felt Kasumi's warm hand on her shoulder.  She gave her sister a hug and looked up when Kasumi finally asked the question she had wanted to ask when Nabiki had first come in.

            "So, tell me, what really happened Akane?"  Kasumi asked, giving her sister a small hug before looking down at her.  Akane felt a few of the old tears resurfacing, and she told Kasumi the whole story, starting from a few days ago.  As she went on, she felt a load lifting from her shoulders like weights that had been holding her down.  The whole time Kasumi just listened and nodded, asking for clarifications at intervals, and making the appropriate consoling sounds when necessary.  Their talk lasted through most the afternoon, where they carried it to the couch before long.

            When Akane finished, Kasumi suddenly put her hand to her mouth as her eyes widened.  "Oh my!"

            "What, what is it?"  Akane looked around for the source of Kasumi's distress.

            "We've forgotten about Ranma.  He's still sick in bed."  Akane gasped when she realized Kasumi was right.  They both jumped up from the couch and ran to Ranma's room.  When they opened the door they were greeted with an odd sight indeed.  There on the floor kneeling over a sleeping Ranma was Nabiki.  She had a warm washcloth rolled up and pressed to his forehead.  Turning at the sound of the door, Nabiki gave them both a questioning look.  Akane was the first to speak, "Nabiki, what?"

            "Don't look at me like that.  When I stopped in to see if he was really here, I saw just how sick he was and got him something to drink before he nodded off.  You two were talking about who knows what and that left me to take care of him."  Even Kasumi gave her a funny, but not disapproving look.  "Ok, so it's _not_ what I would do under normal circumstances, but I'm not heartless.  Give me some credit.  Besides, just look at him...  We might want to call Toufuu if he doesn't wake by dinnertime."

            Akane agreed with Nabiki, Ranma _did _look even worse than before.  She and Kasumi exchanged glances and Kasumi left to make lunch for everyone.  "Should we call Dr. Toufuu and tell him the condition Ranma is in, just in case?"  Akane asked Nabiki softly.  Her older sister turned and tilted her head thinking it over.

            "Yea, probably.  Do you want to call him, or should I?"  

            "You'd better call him, you've been tending Ranma for the past hour.  I'll take over for now."  Akane told Nabiki, who agreed that is was a reasonable switch.  As Nabiki walked out, she couldn't resist whispering to Akane when they passed one another, "You two have fun while I'm gone."

            "Nabiki!  I would never,"  Akane started automatically before catching the ill-timed joke.  Blushing, Akane went and knelt down on the ground, next to Ranma's head.  She looked over him once, and sighed.  _He doesn't look good at all.  I can't believe I forgot about him because of my stupid problems._  _Ranma, you just hang in there._  _I-We'll take care of you._  Akane dipped the cloth in a nearby bowl of heated water, and mopped his brow again.  She pushed his bangs gently out of the way with one hand, pressing the cloth to his forehead with the other.  _This is going to be a long day, I can already tell…but, I don't mind._

            'Certainly, Nabiki, this sounds most serious.  I have a few things left to do, but then I'll be right over,' the line went dead as Dr. Toufuu hung up on his end.  Nabiki re-cradled the phone before walking into the kitchen to tell Kasumi that the good doctor would be coming over to take a look at Ranma's condition.

            "Oh, My.  Will he be here that soon?  It's almost time for lunch.  Do you think he has eaten yet?"  Kasumi thought aloud, half to herself, and half to Nabiki as well.

            "Hmm, I don't know.  He did say that there was something he had to take care of first."  Nabiki thoughtfully tapped an index finger against her cheek.

            "I'll set an extra place, just in case."

            "Ok, Kasumi, you do that.  I'll let Akane know what's up."  The middle Tendou daughter rolled her eyes in exasperation.  _Why does she ask me a question then answer it herself?  **Rhetorical question,** **isn't that what you just did?**_  Nabiki tossed one last comment to her sister before heading into the hall, "Kasumi, are you sure it's safe for the doctor to eat with us?  I mean…"  Nabiki let it go at that, her sister sometimes seemed as careless as Dr. Toufuu was when they were together.

            Souun and Genma both looked up from their game of Shogi at the faint mention of lunch.  They were seated just outside the living room, on the porch.  Genma turned to his good friend and asked bluntly, "You think there is something going on that we should know about?  I haven't seen hide nor hair of my ungrateful son since Akane brought him in last night."

            "No, if there were something important, one of the girls would tell me."   Souun replied to Genma as he made his next move on the board.  The two solemnly nodded at one another, returning their concentration to the all-important 1,339th game.  Together they resolved to break from the game only for two occasions: to eat,  or to bear witness to the marriage between Akane and Ranma.

            Dr. Toufuu didn't arrive at the Tendou home until about fifteen minutes after everyone was finished eating.  When Akane opened the door to greet him, he quickly apologized for the delay, requesting to see Ranma.  Akane managed a faint smile, ushering the doctor inside.  Only Nabiki was present, as the patriarchs had removed themselves to continue their game of Shogi, and Kasumi left to clean up the kitchen.  "Dr. Toufuu, Ranma is upstairs, resting in his room.  He's been sleeping all day, and well, we were starting to worry."  There was the slightest hint of strain in Akane's words as she spoke hurriedly.

            "Let's go see how he is faring then, shall we,"  Toufuu smiled in reply.  He was curious to see what condition Ranma was in.  _I was quite sure that he would be up and about by now, _Toufuu thought as he let Akane lead the way.  Nabiki remained lounging on the couch as Akane and the doctor ascended the stairs.  She figured that since Toufuu was here, she didn't need to worry over things anymore.  Her thoughts turned to other matters that demanded her attention now that the situation here was in capable hands.

            Ranma tossed and turned in his sleep, the sheets long since knocked off onto the floor.  Cracking the door open, Akane peeked into the room to see if maybe he had woken yet.  _No such luck_, she mused sliding the door open the rest of the way.  She walked to the bed, Toufuu entering the room just after.  Akane looked down at Ranma, worry creasing her brow.  _He's slicked with sweat, but it's not hot in here at all._  When Toufuu motioned her to move out of the way, she reluctantly complied.

            Nabiki looked up from the television when both Akane and Toufuu came back downstairs ten minutes later.  "What's the verdict?  How bad is he?"

            "It doesn't look like he'll be going anywhere for the next couple of days.  The blows he sustained had done more damage than I first thought, unless…"

            "Unless what," Nabiki asked as he trailed off in apparent thought.

            "Well, that is…did he injure himself further since he was brought home?"  While Nabiki gave a noncommittal shrug, not having seen much of him after yesterday, Akane shrank in on herself, trying unsuccessfully to avoid notice.  Which worked, at first, Toufuu was facing Nabiki after all.  But, the critical gaze of Nabiki certainly did not miss her sisters none to subtle reaction.  She was about to ask why Akane was acting like that, when Toufuu gave a sigh and looked over at Akane.  "I thought you might be able to tell me where the fresh bruises on Ranma's face came from.  Did he stumble and hit something?"

            "Ah, um.  No.  I mean he did fall, but he didn't hurt himself doing it.  He was in the bathroom, and I walked in.  Then I accidentally hit him with the water bucket."  Akane paused to think how what she said just now would sound to the others.  Figuring it might sound a little off, she added a little clarification.  "He wanted to be a guy again, and I was going to splash him since he was too weak to do it himself.  It's just that the bucket, it slipped out of my hands."  She lifted her eyes from the floor when she finished speaking.

            Nabiki just stared at Akane, speechless.  _Wonder if she left anything out.  I'll get the whole story from her later on.  No sense in embarrassing her anymore than she already is right now.  Toufuu is probably going to have a field day with this.  Can't believe she hit Ranma, in the head, again!  That's bad, even for her._  At the moment, Toufuu just stared, before composing himself.  "Akane, you really should be more careful around Ranma in the future.  He's going to be ok, this time.  And I think you've had enough on your mind today without my adding to it."

            A few minutes later, Toufuu said his goodbyes, briefly stumbling over the table when Kasumi popped out of the kitchen to tell him hello before he went.  As he left, he reminded the girls to call him should anything else happen.  Akane saw him to the walkway, then went back inside to face the questions Nabiki was sure to have.  She had already explained the whole ordeal at length to Kasumi, so thankfully there was that much less to agonize over.  With a resigned attitude, Akane reentered the house.  _Yes, definitely a long day._

Akane watched over Ranma for the remainder of the day, though occasionally one of the other sisters would poke their head into the room to check up on how things were going.  Seeing as Ranma was no longer sweating profusely, and his slight fever having broken mid-afternoon, Akane left his side to go eat dinner.  They tried to avoid eating in the rooms, and she wanted to talk to the others any way.  _Not that I wouldn't mind eating in here, but I've been sitting here by Ranma's side for hours on end._

            In the darkness of his room, Ranma's eyes wearily flickered open.  His head was still a little sore, but otherwise, everything else was fine.  Sitting up, he looked around for something.  Not able to remember what it was, though he knew something was missing, it just didn't feel _right_.  Moving to swing his legs out of bed, he tried sitting up.  To his chagrin, he found that to be a bad idea as blue flares of pain blossomed behind his eyes.  With a gurgled curse, Ranma dropped his head back onto the pillow.

            He remained on his back, just staring at the ceiling for some time.  Then, finding that boring, rolled to his side to look out the window between the nearly closed curtains.  _How long have I been sleeping?  Can't be too long surely.  Ugh, why is my head killing me?  Oh, that's right…Kunou, and the vase, and then…Akane, with the bucket_.  Mentally he amended that last part, n_o, I'm pretty sure it was an accident with the bucket._  Wordlessly, he watched the clouds drift by in the waning daylight through an opening in the curtains.

            Ranma lay there, just thinking, for the last half-hour before the sun set behind the houses on the horizon.  Red-orange streaks of light lazily faded into the pale hues of moonlight as he watched.  It was quiet in here and he could hear the sounds of talk and movement from downstairs.  _Must be finishing up with dinner.  Man, now I'm getting hungry.  Maybe I can,_ that thought was cut off when he tried again to rise, to the same effect as earlier.  _Just great, well guess I'll go down and make myself something later on.  I'm not going to call for help, it was embarrassing enough in the bathroom with Akane._

            Sighing heavily, he leaned back, closing his eyes to try and clear his head.  Just as his head hit the pillow, there was a small creak, and the door quietly opened.  Fighting the urge to call out and see who was coming in without knocking, he kept still when he remembered he had been sleeping before anyway.  There was the shuffle of a pair of feet, then a light thump of an object being placed on the small stand next to the bed.  "Here, Ranma, Kasumi made some dinner for you, in case you woke up and were hungry."  As the owner of the voice padded off, he opened one eye to watch Akane leave the room.  For a moment, he had thought she knew he was awake, but her tone of voice was hushed.  It had been as if she were talking more to herself than anything else.

            For a second there, things had felt alright again to Ranma.  Now he tried to figure out what was going on.  When Akane had spoken, even thought she was talking to herself, it had seemed, familiar somehow.  Suddenly it clicked in his mind's eye.  _That's what was missing from the room, Akane._  Revealing as the insight was, it didn't solve much of anything.  _Why would Akane be what was missing?  And why did she sound so familiar speaking aloud that way?_  Ranma certainly couldn't remember her talking to herself before, at least not habitually.

            _This is strange, I feel like she's been in here for a long time, heck the place even…smells like her._  "Ok, what's going on here?"  Ranma spoke this in a very confused tone.  "I get whacked on the head a few times, and everything changes on me."  _Maybe that's it.  I'm not even awake yet, still in some strange dream._  "Don't remember getting hungry in a dream before, much less having such a bad headache."  Ranma eyed the plate of food just a few inches from his head.  Tentatively, he reached out for the plate, carefully pulling it from the table over onto his lap.  He could just manage to prop himself against the wall to sit up.

            Shortly, Ranma set the empty plate back onto the side table.  He felt better, but tired again.  _I've been sleeping forever, though I guess a short nap isn't going to hurt._  Slumping against the pillow, he drifted off into a dreamless slumber.  In her room, Akane was getting ready for bed, when she decided to check on Ranma one last time.  The conversation over dinner had been strained between herself and Ranma's father.  Even Nabiki had confided in Akane later that she thought Genma was more than a little callous when it came to Ranma's injuries.

            Peeking her head inside Ranma's room, Akane saw that he was still fast asleep.  She was about to leave and close the door, when she noticed the plate she had brought in was empty.  _Dr. Toufuu was right, he'll be better soon._ Akane felt her lips draw into a small smile.  She would talk to Ranma in the morning, he's surely be well by then.  Quietly, Akane walked in and took the empty plate from Ranma's room to put it in the sink downstairs.  Ranma blinked, opening his eyes, he hadn't been able to sleep very long at all after eating, and had watched Akane take the plate and leave.

            Stretching, Ranma craned his neck from side to side, working the kinks out.  Pushing the covers off, he rose to his feet, feeling much, much better than he had upon waking last night.  He shot a glance to the clock hanging against the wall.  "Five fifteen, not too bad.  Wonder if anyone else is up?  Hnh, Pop might be.  Then again, he'd have tossed me out the window if he was up already."  Ranma did a few more standing stretches, just to see how his head handled the extra blood flow.  "Perfect.  Feelin' mighty fine if I do say so."  With that, he gathered a change of clothes and went to wash the remnants of sleep away.

            Lowering himself into the steaming furo, Ranma relaxed, content to let the heat melt away the soreness in his shoulders and neck left from laying in bed all day yesterday.  It was nearing five forty when Ranma pulled himself out of the bath, refreshed and ready to face the day.  He had wanted to do a few kata's before taking a bath, especially since he hadn't gotten in any practice yesterday.  However, he felt that he should take it easy for just one more day.  He really had no wish to be bedridden again so soon.

            He finished drying his hair, tossing the towel onto the rack he kept most of his things on.  Ranma decided he was hungry and walked out into the hall to head downstairs, nearly colliding with a bleary eyed Akane in the process.  She had just woken and gone to check and see if he was up.  "Mornin' Akane," he managed a smile as he caught her before she stumbled.  She went wide eyed for a split-second, clearly surprised to find him up and dressed.  "You alright?  Seem kinda, well, never mind.  Anyone else awake yet?"

            "R-Ranma, you're feeling better?"  She struggled to find words that wouldn't sound stupid, when she realized that his hands were still on her shoulders.  He seemed to notice at the same time, and brought his hands quickly down to his sides.  

            "Yeah, lots better really.  So, is anyone up?"  Ranma repeated out of embarrassment.  Which was fine, because Akane had missed the question the first time.  She nodded at his reply before answering.

            "That's good, you weren't doing well yesterday.  We had to call Dr. Toufuu over to take another look at you.  Everyone was concerned about you Ranma.  And, um.  I think everyone else is still asleep.  I didn't hear Kasumi downstairs, plus it's Sunday."  Ranma nodded understanding.

            "Right, they might want to sleep in.  Not a problem, but I'm kinda hungry, want to get somethin' to eat?"  Ranma asked Akane, whose stomach started to gurgle.  She turned red and said that she would be down in a minute after she washed up.  "Okay, I'll go and see what there is in the kitchen for breakfast."  Ranma left Akane to clean herself up, taking the stairs lightly down so he didn't wake anyone.  Akane watched  him go before she smiled to herself and went into the bathroom.

            In the kitchen, Ranma looked through a few cupboards first.  _Ok, so there isn't much here.  A few packets of instant ramen and miso soup.  Though I don't feel much like cooking, I'd rather not go with the insta-stuff.  There's gotta be something reasonable to eat._  _Maybe there are leftovers from dinner._  That in mind, he opened the refrigerator to see what there was to be had inside.  It took a little searching, and then he found what he wanted.  "Here we go, steamed rice and roasted chicken.  Just hav'ta find the Teriyaki sauce."

            Akane came down just as he finished heating up two bowls of food.  "Smells good, dinner from last night?"

            "Ah, it was all I could find, don't mind do ya?"  Ranma looked over at her as he set the bowls down on the table.  She shook her head, offering up a small grin.  "Ok, there was nothin' else anyway.  Nothin' that didn't need to be cooked first anyway.  Don't know about you, but this stuff looks great to me,"  he said, pointing to the bowls with his chopsticks.  At his mention of things that didn't need to be cooked first, Akane felt herself getting a little hot.  Her temper wanted badly to spill over and she was determined not to let it.

            Her mantra started up in her head to settle her mood.  It consisted of the phrase, _he didn't mean it the way you think_, repeated nearly twenty times before she calmed down.  Ranma started to eat when he noticed her forcing a smile at him.  This caused him to tense involuntarily, and he visibly relaxed when her smile became more natural two minutes later.  _Gah, that was close.  What did I say this time?  Certainly not going to ask her what I said.  That never works, just hurts._  _This is getting awkward, should I say something?  **Thank her for watching over you, dummy.**_

            "Akane.  About yesterday."

            "What about it?"

            "Thanks, for watching over me and all."  She blanched at his words, and then recovered reaching across the table to swat at him.

            "Hey, what's that for?"  Ranma backed up, indignantly.

            "You were awake and didn't tell me!  You just let me sit there and, and talk like that."  This started to confuse him, _what is she talking about?_  

            "I don't know what you mean Akane, I was asleep the whole time.  I only woke up for a few minutes after you brought the food.  Then I saw you when you came to take the dish away.  I just thought you were checking up on me from time to time."  Ranma attempted to explain.

            "Oh, I thought," Akane trailed off again.

            "What?  Tell me what you thought Akane, please.  I don't want to get off to a bad start, not after things have been going like they have."  Ranma set his bowl down, giving her his full attention.  Something he rarely did, and it was showing in they way she reacted.  Under his questioning gaze she blushed and tried to give voice to her feelings.  She had been apologizing to him a lot the past few days and that wasn't how she wanted to start this conversation.

            "Ranma, I wasn't 'peeking in on you from time to time,' I stayed in your room with you for most of the day.  I was worried, but Dr. Toufuu, when he came over, said you would be ok in a day or two."  She said all this as normally as she could muster, trying hard to sound meek or anything.

            "The whole day?"  Ranma was trying to picture that.  He thought her looking in on him had been nice.  But, this was unexpected.  He didn't know what else to say.  Akane on the other hand looked relieved, and she was.  _He didn't hear me_, the thought came with mixed emotions.  Deep down, she had wanted him to hear her, even in his sleep.  It would have brought things out into the open.  At the same time, she was terrified of the thought.  The fact that he was asleep had been the only thing letting her talk freely.

            "The whole day?"  Ranma was still trying to get his mind around that little fact.  "I had no idea, I'm grateful Akane.  You didn't have to do that.  But, it was nice…even if I was sleeping at the time."  Ranma looked over at Akane as he spoke, who was now most definitely red in the face.  He was about to say something else, when he remembered her telling him inadvertently that she had been talking about things while he was sleeping.  "Akane, what were you talking about yesterday, in my room?"

            "Talking about?"  Akane managed to turn a few shades redder.  "Just things, you know.  School, friends, that kind of stuff.  You know, like we normally talk about."  Ranma scratched his head, _why would school make her turn all red?_  _Unless, there was someone she…Wait, she _is_ my fiancée.  Can't be another guy.  Can it?_  Now Ranma was confused.  He didn't know what to think about this.  Watching his brow furrow, Akane didn't understand his expression.

            "Ranma, what's wrong?"  She had thought things were going fine, up until this.  Fortunately, any further misunderstandings that might have arisen were cut short by a cheerful voice from the stairs, Kasumi's to be precise.

            "Good morning!  Ranma, you must be feeling better!"  Kasumi smiled at the two.  Then she noticed the half-full bowls of food.  "Oh my, you've both already eaten?  I was just about to make something for breakfast."

            "Ah, sorry about that Kasumi, we thought you wanted to sleep in, so we ate leftovers."  Ranma told the elder Tendou daughter.  "But, I'm still kinda hungry, Akane might be too.  We'll eat with everyone else when they get up."  Ranma wasn't actually feeling all that hungry at the moment, however, he didn't want to hurt Kasumi's feelings.

            "Ranma's right, I'll eat then too."  Akane wasn't feeling hungry either, but this was her sister.  So she took Ranma's cue on this one.  In the meantime, she was going to go take a bath before everyone tried to get in there before her.  "I'm going to go get dressed.  I'll be back down in a few minutes."  With that, she rose from the table, heading for the stairs.  Ranma watched as she left, turning to Kasumi when Akane had disappeared upstairs.

            "Kasumi, Akane really stayed in my room all day yesterday?"  It wasn't that Ranma hadn't believed Akane, but he felt that he had to ask.  Kasumi turned around in the kitchen with a warm smile.

            "Of course Ranma, Nabiki did too for a little bit.  But, Akane was there for hours sitting by your bed."  Now it was Ranma's turn to change a funny color.

            "O-Of course.  Silly of me to ask."

            "It's ok Ranma.  She was really concerned, and worried.  We all were, but she showed it the most.  Breakfast will be ready soon."

            "Alright Kasumi, I'll be back in a minute, I'm gonna wake pop, and the others."  Ranma slid from the table and went to _wake up_ his father.  With a swift kick, he punted Genma out of bed and through the open window of the guest room.  "Wake up, pops!"  Ranma heard a satisfying thud as his father hit the ground outside, preferably with his head.  He smiled as his father pulled himself in through the window.  

            "Have you no manners boy?"  Genma stood up, jumping down from the futon he had been sleeping on.

            "Yea, old man, learned 'em from you.  Let's get downstairs, people are waitin'."  Ranma walked out and Genma dropped out of a relaxed fighting stance.  His stomach growled, and to him food was just as important as combat, so he followed after his son.

            "Healed are you boy?"

            "You know me, good as new pop."  Ranma left his father to go wake Nabiki and Souun.  If Akane was up, those two should get up too, he reasoned.  Not that he looked forward to _bloodshot-eye_ Souun, that was almost, but not quite as bad as _big_ _demon-head _Souun, in Ranma's opinion.  Several grumbles and door slams later, Ranma went back downstairs to eat.  _If they didn't want to wake up, it's fine by me.  _Ranma went down and sat across from Akane, who was bathed and dressed at this point.

            A few minutes after everyone started eating, if what Ranma and Akane where doing could be called such, Nabiki and Souun came down.  Both father and daughter glared daggers at Ranma, while Kasumi looked back and forth from Ranma, to Akane.  "I thought you two said you were still hungry?"  Kasumi asked, a little downtrodden.  The aforementioned pair were only picking idly at the breakfast laid out on the table.  "You were stuck in bed for a whole day, why don't you go for a walk?  That should give you an appetite.  You go with him Akane, you were sitting around too."

            Ranma tentatively agreed with Kasumi, he had been wanting to get out of the house.  Akane was another matter.  She wanted to get out too, _but take a walk with Ranma?  What is Kasumi thinking.  Oh, right._  _Sometimes my sisters can be too much._  As if to prove Akane right, Nabiki had to go throw her input in as well, making some off the wall remark.  "See ya guys later then."  Ranma got up and went to slip on his shoes by the front door.  He didn't stop to wait for Akane before he walked outside.

            "Hey, wait for me, Ranma!  Jerk."  Akane muttered the insult out of habit, which Ranma didn't catch.  She hurried to go after him, and the rest of the family just stared for a second.  Then, as if nothing had happened, they went back to eating.  Down the walkway, Ranma was leaning against the front wall, watching in amusement as Akane rushed out the door.  He smirked lightly, when she saw him waiting and pulled up short, huffing in annoyance.  "Ranma, that's mean!"

            "What?  You told me to wait, ya know."  

            "That's not what I meant, you pretended to run off without me."  Akane was still a little cross with him at this point.  _He's treating me like some big joke again._  Ranma softened his grin when he saw how seriously she was taking the whole thing.

            "Hey now, I didn't think you would take it like this.  So you really wanted to walk with me then?"  When he said it that way, Akane bowed her head.  _Oh, I didn't think about it that way.  This is embarrassing.  Why do I have to get so riled up over things like this?_  She didn't notice Ranma push away from the wall and walk over to her.  When she looked up, it was right into his eyes.  "C'mon tomboy, let's get a move on."  Ranma patted her shoulder, walking with her around the corner and onto the sidewalk.

            She was completely caught off guard by his action that the familiar jibe failed to register.  When they were out of sight of the front of the house Ranma's hand fell from her shoulders.  Immediately, she missed the close contact, fleeting though it was.  Akane glanced over at Ranma, who was walking with is hands folded neatly behind his back, just a few steps to the side of her.  She wanted to say something to break the silence, but had no clue as to what to say.  Ranma just continued to walk along, seemingly oblivious to her presence.

            Ranma glanced over at Akane, who had just turned her eyes forward, he felt slightly nervous for some reason.  To make things even stranger, his hand was tingling from where he had brushed her skin while leading her out of the front yard.  From the corner of his eye, he continued to watch Akane's profile as he kept an even pace with her, matching her step for step.  The morning sun was only just beginning to peak its rays over the tops of the houses as they walked.  Ranma noted the way a few of those rays shone against her blue-black hair.

            Back inside the Tendou home, Kasumi was smiling to herself at her handiwork as she watched Ranma steer her sister towards the corner.  _Some things just need a little push, and with those two, it might take quite a few.  Finally, things were going the way they should've long ago.  Even with the frequent fiancée problems here and there, this was bound to pan out.  I just hope nothing interrupts their little walk.  That would be such a shame._  Kasumi turned her attention back to the meal at hand when Ranma and Akane disappeared around the wall.

            _I wonder if he's going to say anything.  This is kind of nice, just walking and not worrying about anything for a while._  Akane watched one foot proceed the other, then repeat again with the opposite foot.  She didn't mean to stare at the ground, but staring at Ranma was out of the question.  _I'm afraid he might be looking back, or maybe he won't be looking at me at all._  This is what it all came down to, indecision.  _If he doesn't feel the same way, I…I just don't know._

            Ranma watched as they passed by numerous houses along their way to wherever.  He started thinking that a little time at the park might be nice.  He turned to tell Akane where he wanted to go, to see if she would be up to it as well.  She was staring down at her feet, _she looks bored maybe she didn't want to go for a walk after all._  **_Ah, stuff it Saotome, no harm in asking is there?_**_  She might,**…what?  Say no?  Come off it guy, where's that martial art's mentality?  Thought you lived by the no-pain-no-gain attitude.**_  

            "Hey, Akane."  Ranma started, to get her attention.  It appeared to work since her eyes shifted from her feet to his face almost immediately.  _Maybe she was just distracted by something a second ago._  "I was wonderin', up for a little stroll over to the park?"  He canted his head to the side as he asked, one of those lopsided grins plastering his face.  Akane nearly giggled, catching herself at the last moment, though she did manage a smile.

            "I'd like that Ranma."  She meant it too, _maybe we can just sit down on the grass for a while, that would be nice._  **_That's it, just have to tell him that's what you'd like to do._**  "Um, Ranma?"

            "Yeah?"

            "Do we have to _walk_ in the park?"

            "Hmm, I guess we don't have to go.  But, I thought you wanted to go to the park?"  Akane smiled as Ranma missed her point.

            "No, what I meant was couldn't we just find a spot to sit for a while.  I don't feel up to walking all over right now."  Ranma chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.

            "Sure, you confused me for a sec there.  But, yea, that's fine by me."  Inside, Ranma was shaking nervously.  _She just said spot right, not quiet spot?  Man, was asking to go to the park a bad idea?_  Akane looked over at Ranma, now that they had started talking again, she was sure it was ok to look.  The first thing she noticed was that something was off, not wrong, but off, about his demeanor.  _Did I say something?  Maybe going to the park was a bad idea.  But, he suggested it, not me._  She shook the doubt away, and decided to ask him what was wrong when they found a good place to sit.

            Five minutes later, they had found a nice grassy hill to sit on.  Well, Akane found it, Ranma was just following at this point.  Plopping down, she smoothed her dress under her legs, not so hard as to get grass stains on it.  Ranma just sat, leaning back with his hands behind him, propping himself up.  He could tell that Akane wanted to say something, but he didn't know what it could be.  He was still a little edgy from his earlier thoughts when they walked to the park.  Akane sighed, turning her face up to the light blue sky above.  

It was still early enough to see the moon out in its little corner of the sky.  Akane watched the few remaining rays of dawn fade into the white fluff of clouds overhead.  _This is nice, but it'll be better once I find out what is bothering Ranma so much._  Still cloud watching, Akane asked him what was on his mind, "Ranma, if you didn't want to come, why did you suggest the park?"  She looked over at him when he failed to respond.  He appeared to be thinking the question over, because his eyes were closed as he sat there next to her.

When his eyes finally did open, Akane took a breath as strong twin blues focused on her.  Ranma blinked at her reaction, twisting his head to see if someone was sneaking up on him from behind.  Akane caught her breath when he broke his gaze off, turning away.  "What is it Ranma?"

"Huh, nothing.  I thought.  You didn't see anyone behind me?"  _Oh, he doesn't know I was looking at him._  

"No, must've been a shadow out of the corner of my eye.  You didn't answer me Ranma.  Is something wrong?"

"Why would you think something is wrong Akane?"  _She can't tell I'm nervous can she?  Hate to think I'm that obvious.  Guess so, or she wouldn't have brought it up._

"You've just been a little distant on the way over here."  Akane replied.

"And you weren't?" Ranma sounded a little flustered now.  Akane watched him.  _This was supposed to be nice, and he's getting all bent out of shape._  

"I just wanted to know if something was bothering you.  Sorry for caring!"  Akane folded her arms across her knees.  _There I go, apologizing again.  He can be so insensitive._

"Jeez, Akane, I didn't know you would get so worked up.  I shouldn't have snapped at you.  It just that…I don't know what it is.  Can we, can we talk about it?  Start over again?"  Ranma felt like he was grasping for straws now.  He never had much luck at salvaging a situation like this before.  Usually that was due to untimely interruptions.  But, who would look for them here?  Much less, them here together, alone.  Ranma slid closer to Akane trying to coax her out of her funk.

Akane felt an arm around her shoulders for the second time that morning.  She looked up once again to find Ranma only scant inches away.  He actually seemed concerned, for her.  "Do you, do you mean that Ranma?  Just start over?  Can we even, I mean, its not too late?"  Ranma gave her another crooked smile.

"I'm up for giving it a shot if you are.  What do you say?"

"You want to be friends?"  Akane nearly teared up, uttering that phrase again from what seemed a different lifetime ago.

"Yea Akane, I really do."  Ranma smiled a full smile this time, something he hadn't done in a long while.  Akane felt good seeing him smile like that, and she felt there was a chance that she might be able to say some of the things to him now.  Things that she had told him in his sleep, just last night.  Right now she didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the situation.   This was going almost too well, even considering the shaky start.  She was so preoccupied that she never noticed when Ranma scooted close enough to lean her against his chest.

Akane noticed only a thump at first, before her brain registered what the sound was, and just as importantly, the fact that her head was pressed against something firm and warm.  She listened to the sound of Ranma's heartbeat for a second longer, then looked up at his face.  He was leaning back holding himself up with one arm, and his other was wrapped around her waist.  Just thinking about this made her blush madly.  Watching him look up at the sky, she wondered what he was thinking about.  "Ranma?"

"Hmm?"  His voice seemed to rumble since she was still pressed against his chest.

"Can we, a-are we more than just friends?  I want to know, that is, I like you and,"  Now she was all embarrassed asking him, but she 'did' want to know.  Because if that wasn't the case, just sitting here, being this close, it would tear her apart.

"I like you too Akane.  I liked you when we first met, it's just that things got in the way.  Pop was dragging me all over the place.  He didn't even tell me what we were doing here in Nerima at first.  Just that we were going to see an old friend of his.  Then they go and spring the whole fiancée thing.  Not to mention this stupid curse."

"I know, I was there remember.  I didn't know what to think when daddy told us one of us was to have a fiancée.  Then, when you showed up as a girl, I thought the whole fiancée deal would be done with."  Akane watched Ranma to see what he was thinking about.

"And now?  What do you think about the whole fiancée thing?"

"You mean about the other girls?"  Akane scrunched her face just picturing shampoo.

"No, I mean just you and me."

"Oh, can't we wait a little to think about that part?"

"As much as I'd like to, you know if our fathers catch wind of our, uh, current status, they'll be rushing us to an altar right then and there."

"Just what is our, _current status_, Ranma?"  Akane hoped he would answer her in just three little words.  That was all she wanted right now.  Naturally, a guy's mind did not run the same tracks as a woman's.  And even gender-switching considered, Ranma was no exception.

"I ah.  Still trying to figure that part out."

"Ranma!"  Akane sat up and hit him on the arm.  "Are you being serious with me right now?"  That had not been among the answers she was expecting from him.  Now, love was not a foreign concept to Ranma at this time.  He knew he loved the Art, and he loved Okonomiyaki, to an extent.  But, did he love a person?  More importantly, did he love Akane?  Searching his thoughts and his experience, he struggled with the answer.  This seemingly innocent question had the power to change everything he knew.

Furthermore, it would mean having to confront not only himself, but everyone else with his decision.  He imagined Ukyou's face, and Shampoo's.  What would they look like if he told them he loved Akane?  Almost as important, what would they _do_ to him, or to Akane, if he told them.  Yes, this was even more difficult than he had imagined in his countless wonderings.  Not only that, but he now had a deadline, Akane was expecting an answer, and it was wanted now, not tomorrow, or the next day.

Strangely, the one thought prominent in his mind at the moment was of his father, shouting for him to _be a man, be a man right now damn it!_  Ranma would question himself many times in the future, if the voice of his father had been the deciding factor.  Each time, the answer to that would always be unanimous.  Ranma cleared his head and opened his eyes, meeting Akane's expectant gaze.  "Akane, I…

Chapter Four: When It Rains- Coming soon


	4. When it Rains

A Ranma ½ Fanfic by INABN

Original Ranma ½ Characters and Settings ©Rumiko Takahashi

Used without express permission.  

All characters not part of the Original Ranma ½ cast are property of INABN

Lyrics property of their individual owners/writers.

Wasurenagusa Chapter Four (Part 1): When It Rains 

            With a heavy sigh, Ukyou let herself drop down wearily onto the futon in her room above Ucchan's.  "What a day.  I didn't think it was going to get so busy already."  She draped her arm across her forehead, absently pushing her bangs back.  _Wonder how Ran-chan's doing?  Hasn't stopped by for a couple of days._  Ukyou rolled onto her side to look out the window.  The view from the second-story of Ucchan's wasn't the best, but at least she could see above the rest of the rooftops nearby.  The first hints of moonlight were already streaming through the window, beyond which lay the violet-black skyline.

            Ukyou sat up on the futon to pull off her outfit.  She had finished all of the closing duties, and was ready for a long soak in a hot bath.  Stretching her arms over her head, Ukyou felt a few lower back muscles twinge, _make that a very hot bath_, she amended herself.  Walking into the bathroom, she turned on the hot water before shedding the rest of her cloths, tossing pants and binding wrap over into a hamper.  As steam filled the room Ukyou shut off the tap.  Dipping a leg gingerly into the water, the rest of her soon followed.  Placing a wet washcloth over her face, she rested against the back of the furo letting the stress of the day ebb out into the water.

            When she woke, Ukyou wondered how long she had been asleep.  _Must've been out for an hour at least_, she mused.  Looking down, she noted her hands were very pink and her palms were wrinkled.  Not only that, but the bath water was quite cold.  _Probably what woke me._  Tossing the dry cloth to the side of the furo, Ukyou climbed out reaching for a fluffy towel that hung on a rack against the wall.  Yawning, she wrapped the towel around herself to go brush her teeth and head off to bed.  _Hope tomorrow is a little calmer, it is a Monday after all._

            At about the same time as Ukyou turned in for the night, Ryouga was walking dejectedly along the sidewalk not too far from Ucchan's.  Every now and then, the lost boy would cast a glance at his surroundings.  Each time, the same grave expression, and subsequent line of thought passed through his head.  _Damn it, everything looks different after dark.  I was sure that I was in Nerima before the sun set.  _With a scowl, Ryouga turned around in a circle, vainly looking for something that he might, _just might_, recognize.  Seeing nothing, he was despondent,  _where am I now?_

            Ryouga heard the faint rumble of thunder in the distance as he made his way down the empty street.  _Lovely, not as if things couldn't get any worse._  In preparation for the coming storm, he slipped the umbrella out from his pack.  Keeping it closed for the moment, he continued on his way, no longer caring where he ended up for the night.  _So long as it's dry_, he thought adamantly.  Resting the red weapon across his shoulders, Ryouga strode on, on the lookout for a place to wait out the coming rainstorm.

            A few minutes later, Ryouga passed by the front of Ucchan's unknowingly.  It was about that time when the rain started to fall.  At first, merely a few heavy drops landed on the ground, just enough for him to warrant opening his umbrella.  All too soon a light drizzle formed into thin sheets of water falling from the swollen black clouds overhead.  The lost boy trudged on, careful not to kick up enough water from the puddles to trigger his curse.  _This is definitely going to be another long cold night._

            Just then he heard the telltale whine of a car approaching down the street, and promptly jumped into a nearby alleyway where the eaves protected him from the rainfall.  Soon the car shot past the alley, where sure enough a large spray of water was directed by the passing vehicle.  Ryouga lowered his umbrella to deflect the splash, smirking at his good fortune for once.  The smile didn't last too long, when as he raised his umbrella, a second car sped past following the first.  His chuckle resolved into a very angry 'bwee'.

            P-chan glared daggers at the taillights of the retreating cars.  Unbidden words sprang into his mind, almost a litany before he squelched them, _damn you Ranma, this is all your fault!  **Actually it probably isn't, but it feels good to blame him anyway doesn't it?  **Damn you Ranma, you'll suffer for this indignity.**  Hey, now.  I was joking.  Still, he probably is warm inside the Tendou home, snuggling with Akane.  **Augh!  I'll kill you Ranma!_  P-chan bristled vehemently, eyes narrowed down to slits as he contemplated four-hundred and one ways to kill Ranma Saotome.

            Ranma was indeed warm inside the Tendou home, though he was not as Ryouga imagined, snuggling with Akane.  Neither were his thoughts on Ryouga, or P-chan, for that matter.  Instead he was sitting on his futon looking out the rain-streaked window.  Turning his mind over the events of the past week, it all still seemed surreal enough, and he knew it had happened.  _Why can't things ever work out, even just a little like I plan?_  _Does everything always have to be so hard around this place?_

            Growing tired at the late hour, he went to lay back on the futon, resting his hands behind his head.  Glancing over at his father's considerable bulk, he rolled his eyes.  "Pops, d'ya have to snore so loud?  Can't even get to sleep with that buzz saw you've got jammed down yer throat."  Ranma focused on the patterns the sheets of rain were drawing on the window, which seemed to help him relax, just a little.  "Gonna be up all night at this rate now."  He rolled onto his side, facing the window in an attempt to ignore the grating sounds of his father.

            Ranma struggled with himself for another half-hour of tossing and turning in an attempt to get comfortable.  _Man, can't get to sleep at all.  Just my luck._  He rolled onto his stomach, pulling his small pillow over his head to shut out the noise from the rest of the house.  _Gah, if it wasn't raining I'd go up on the roof.  It'd be quiet up there._  Since the pillow wasn't helping, he tossed it at Genma's head.  Which did absolutely nothing to stop the snoring.  Well, that wasn't quite true; Genma snorted when the pillow hit his face, then resumed his nasal affront.

            Rolling his eyes, Ranma stepped over his dad, briefly entertaining the thought of 'accidentally' planting a foot in Genma's face.  Shaking his head, he quietly opened his door, not wanting to wake anyone else.  He glanced down the hallway then made his way to the kitchen.  _Maybe some tea will put me to sleep.  Anything's worth a try at this point._  Stepping into the kitchen, Ranma was somewhat relieved to find himself up alone.  He felt that now wasn't the time to run into anyone else, in light of the days events.  Especially if that someone else happened to be Akane.

            _Damn, what went wrong?  We were so close to something today._  He closed his fingers around the warm cup of tea, letting the heat flow into his hands.  Leaning back against the fridge, he rested the steaming cup down on the counter near the sink.  _I tried so hard to tell her how I felt about all of this.  I know she was doing her best to listen.  We both tried so much today.  **Think that might be it, hmm?  Maybe you tried too hard, tried to go too fast there.  Face it, Romeo you are not…even if you've played the part.**_

            Ranma stood there in the kitchen debating with himself just what to do with his life.  He stood there impassively, taking a sip of tea every so often as he saw fit.  Deep in thought, he stood there for the better part of an hour, until the remains of tea left in his cup was bitter and ice cold. Still, no clear light shone at the end of the tunnel in his mind. All the while, the rain continued to tattoo a rough beat against the windows of the Tendou home well into the night.

            Ryouga blinked himself awake as several shafts of the morning sunlight pierced his slumber.  Moving his hand across his face, he mumbled curses at the pool of warm water he was laying in.  Sitting up, the lost boy took stock of his surroundings, the last thing he remembered were those damnable cars coming down the street…  The first thing he noticed out of place was his state of dress.  Namely, the fact that he was quite naked.  In of itself, not a problem since his pack was never too far away.  Getting to his feet, Ryouga cast about for his pack or umbrella.  Neither was in sight.  

            Now, the lost boy wasn't stupid, not by a long shot.  But, some things just didn't want to add up in his head.  It was early, he was hungry, and he couldn't for the life of him remember what had happened last night.  A combination of factors that led him to become angry, then drift slowly into merely upset.  Casting another glance around, he failed to make heads or tails of his location, not surprising really since he was lost more often than not anyway.  He noted an abundance of flowers and other small plant life arranged in various patterns on the ground around himself.  _I'm  in a garden?  What next, a bathhouse?_

            Brushing loose soil and leaves from his skin he concentrated hard in looking for an exit.  _Not the best of things if some unsuspecting housewife walks out and finds me like this._  _Or worse, an irate husband._  Surrounding the garden on three sides were fairly tall cement walls.  A sizable building took up the fourth side.  It appeared to be an apartment building from what Ryouga could tell.  Painted a drab tan, the three storied complex faced the south.  _How did I get in here there's no gate_, he paused in thought.  _Did I just walk through the apartment?  Must have, don't see any holes anywhere._

            _I need to get out of here before someone spots me._  His eyes fell upon a rack of linens hanging out to dry at the back entrance to the ground floor apartment.  _Something in the way of clothing first I think would be in order._  _Please, please let there not only be girls clothing there._  Much to Ryouga's chagrin, there were neither female, nor male clothing on the rack.  _Just great.  How the hell am I supposed to wear a bed sheet?  Don't even have anything to hold it together._  His hand shot out to grab the blue sheet regardless, when he heard a door open on the balcony just over his head.

            With the bed sheet pulled tightly around himself, he dove for cover behind a large bush near the laundry rack.  He was greeted in the bush by pointy branches and a startled bird.  Thankfully, the small bird made hardly a noise as it flew off to find a spot where it would be less likely to be disturbed.  Ryouga quickly found that he was holding his breath.  _Whoever is up there, go away, just go back inside.  There is nothing for you to see out here._  When he didn't hear any movement from the balcony, he risked a peek upwards from within the shrubbery.

            Ryouga managed a weak little laugh as his gaze was met by another pair of eyes staring down at him from right outside the bush he was in.  "Ha, Ha…this, uh isn't what it looks like…I assure you."  Ryouga fought to retain some composure in the situation, which was made doubly hard by his state of dress, and that the pair of eyes belonged to a young girl.  In the back of his mind, where thoughts were a little more rational he noted the girl was around his own age, and cute too.  That same part also noted that the girl didn't seem all that mad at this.  The rest of him, namely his mouth, kept stammering out some sort of explanation.

            The continuing stare of the girl started to make him feel distinctly uncomfortable.  From past experience, not frequent ones mind you, Ryouga was expecting something along the lines of 'Eeek, Pervert!' followed by a sound thrashing.  However what the girl was doing was a far cry from the expected…he felt like she was undressing him with her eyes, not that there was much to remove at the moment.  Ryouga felt himself flush under the intense scrutiny.  "I…I, um, well that is I think I'll be going about now!"  The thoroughly embarrassed boy pushed out of the bushes, attempting to back away from the situation.  In his flight he failed to notice one little detail.  Nothing extremely major in of itself, but when taken along with everything else it became a big deal.

            "Oh…how cute."  The seemingly innocuous comment from his 'admirer' took on another meaning altogether with the seductive tone of voice she was using.  Ryouga's attention fell upon the blue mass tangled in the bushes.  _Hey, that looks like the…uh oh._   **_Hey, bud, getting a little breezy out here is it?  _**Shooting a glance downward while at the same time scrambling to cover himself with his hands, the lost boy felt a little light headed about the whole incident.  _Please, oh please, don't let me pass out!  **Yes, for once I agree…that girl gives me the creeps…we aren't a piece of meat…let's get out of here, maybe find that sweet Akari.**  Akari…_

            Ryouga continued to back up until he was stopped by the wall surrounding the apartment.  Still staring, the girl made no move to stop him from leaving, even if he thought she was giving him the strangest look.  **_You are naked you know.  _**_She's not even blushing or anything!_  _Reminds me of a shark, or …**more like Nabiki, right?**_  _Ok, that's it, I'm outta here!_  Ryouga turned about to face the wall, somewhat mindful of directing the girl's attention to his posterior.  As he broke through the wall in his haste to flee, the image of the girl leering at his rear threatened to overtake his conscious thought.

            Warm sunlight cascaded through the window, washing over the sleeping form of Ukyou Kuonji.  With a sigh she rolled out of bed, ready, if not exactly willing to face the day.  "Damn, five more minutes would've been nice,"  it was a statement she had taken to making the past week once business had picked up for the summer.  A futile sentiment at best, since she knew full well that once her internal alarm went off she had next to no chance of going back to sleep.  Grumbling to herself, she headed downstairs to start preparing for the afternoon rush.   Only stopping in the bathroom long enough to scrub the sleep from her eyes and get cleaned and dressed.

            Already Ukyou missed Konatsu, she had grown used to the fawning kunoichi over the past year.  Though it was more in that he had helped with the workload around Ucchan's.  Konatsu had left two weeks ago saying that there was very urgent business with the Kenzan.  Ukyou took that to mean several things, especially since Konatsu had never expressed any such inclinations before.  **_No use worrying over that now, you have work to do girl!_**  "I'm glad that I changed the hours to open a little later during the week.  Definitely gonna need the rest if the weekend was any indication of how crazy things are gonna be for the next month."

            After giving the place a once over, Ukyou found herself satisfied with the condition of the kitchen and floor.  She was about to set out the batter for the morning when a loud crash distracted her from outside the rear of the restaurant.  Frowning, the chef brushed her powdery hands on her apron and went to take a look.  Curious, though not yet alarmed, her hand barely strayed toward the large spatula slung across her back.  _This better be good, I don't have the time for any crap today._  Poking her head out the back door she scanned the mouth to the small alley.

            Faint gusts of wind caught her ponytail, stirring it as she turned her head from side to side, not noticing anything out of the ordinary.  Or that's what her first glance warranted.  Upon a second pass, she caught the frantic shuffle of something just around the edge of the dumpster.  From her angle it looked like…_a pair of feet?!_   "Hey, what are you doing back here!  Better not be some kind of pervert!…I swear."  Ukyou punctuated her speech with the rasp of metal on polished leather as she swung her battle spatula into her hands.

            At her words whoever it was behind the dumpster began to struggle faster with whatever they were doing.  From what Ukyou could tell as she made her way around the side of the huge bin, the person was perverted indeed.  Had to be with the way he/she was grunting and flailing his/her legs about.  _Time to give this freak some incentive to get a move on…_Ukyou clanged the flat of her spatula hard against the metal bin with a resounding clang.  

"Augh, what the hell are you doing!?"  Ukyou nearly jumped at the scream of the voice from the other side of the bin, despite the fact that she was intent on scaring the pervert away.  Stilling her pounding heart, Ukyou stepped around the bin with sharpened battle spatula raised overhead poised for an incapacitating blow.  However all thoughts of killing the pervert were banished, somewhat, when she saw who it was.  There amidst the loose papers and bottles on the ground lay a bewildered and nearly nude Ryouga.  "U-U-Ukyou…Tell me I'm back in Nerima."

"Ryouga honey, why are you lying naked in the trash?"  Ukyou kept the laugh she had bubbling in the back of her throat bottled up for a second longer.

"Naked…I'm not…," Ryouga looked down at himself, at the strange predicament his clothes had gotten him.  "…well, I'm still not exactly naked, but, do you mind?  At least let me fix this."  Ryouga tried hard not to think about Ukyou watching him dress more appropriately.  When he finished and told her so, she peeked back around the dumpster and saw that he was dressed correctly.  The lost boy scuffed his feet despondently as he picked up his backpack that he had been sleeping on.  "So, uh…I'd better get going,"  he gave her a toothy grin as his spirits picked up with his currently vengeful thoughts.  "Have a few new tricks to show Ranma.  He'll get what's coming to him this time!"

"Sure sugar, think you want to put your shirt on the right way first?  Or does one of your new moves need it to be on backwards?"  This time she laughed outright.  Turning red, he tossed off his pack and pulled his shirt around the right way.

"Not one word of this to anyone, Kuonji…"

"Don't worry, my lips are sealed sugar."  She gave him a teasing smile.

"Hey, I mean it.   Not a word."  Ryouga gave her his sternest expression as he folded his arms across his chest for effect.

"Just tell me one thing, and I'll leave it at that."  Ukyou mimicked his stance while sheathing her spatula.  Perplexed, he nodded lightly.

"Ok, What?"  he waited for her to ask whatever she would.  Ukyou made a show of tapping her finger against her chin in thought.

"I juts want to know…"  she paused, leaning closer to him.  "How exactly did you get your arms into your pants and your legs into your shirt when I found you out here a few minutes ago."  Ryouga nearly fell over backwards at the sheer stupidity of her question.  Though actually he was at a loss.  From what he remembered, he just woke up like that.  Which is what he told her.

"I just woke up like that…got a problem with it?"  Ryouga bared his fangs in a vain effort to regain his composure.  His answer was a stifled giggle from the Okonomiyaki chef.

"Cute Ryouga, cute.  The others will love this."  Ukyou turned around to go back inside and open up.  A rough hand on her shoulder pulled her to a stop.

"You promised me to keep this to yourself."  His voice was low, but not dangerously so.  She took that as a sign to keep niggling him.

"Did no such thing sugar, All I said was that I'd not tell anyone about you putting your shirt on backwards."  So saying, she tried to shrug off his hand, but he was having none of it.

"You aren't going anywhere until you promise me Ukyou."  He felt her shoulders tense under his palm and wondered what she was going to do.  He was more than sure that she couldn't beat him in a fight.  In fact he was just as sure that if it came to that, he would be at odds with himself when it actually came to fighting her.  Ranma was one thing, this was something else.  Even when Ranma was in his girl form, he was still Ranma, a guy.  Everyone knew that, well, maybe not the Kunou's.  But every one knew that counted.

"Look, Ukyou, it's just something that I'd appreciate."  Ryouga fought to calm himself.  _I wouldn't mind more friends…more enemies, I don't need.  Just the one is enough for me._  He pulled his hand from her shoulder when he felt her relax.   He took a step back when she turned halfway and smiled at him.

"It's ok sugar, I was joking a little, that's all.  Going to be a long day for me so I was trying to sneak in a little fun before the work starts."  She smiled again as she made her way to the back door.

"Oh,"  was the constructive thing his mouth made him say.  A second later, after his brain kicked in, he gave a better reply.  "Need any help?"  When she turned to look at him, she was just as startled as he was at the offer he just made._  What am I thinking?  **Come on, you know that girly-man Konatsu left a few days ago.  She's probably hurting for help around the place.**  But what about…**Ranma?  You can kick his ass any old time.  Besides, free food.  **Well, a guy's gotta eat._  So it was that Ryouga convinced himself to offer his assistance, for good or ill.

Ukyou thought the matter over just as Ryouga was debating the merits of his big mouth.  "Tell you what hun, I do need help carrying some of the heavier things from the supply room to the kitchen.  I can manage myself, but this way I can do it in half the time."  With that, she grabbed the front of his shirt and hauled him inside.  "Don't go wandering off now,"  she softened the remark with a bright smile.  "I'll be right behind you as you carry the boxes, should keep you out of trouble."  Ryouga nodded dumbly as she lead him to the stock room where she kept her extra supplies.

Ten minutes later the supplies Ukyou needed had been moved out of the store room and Ryouga was leaning against the front counter.  Sighing, Ukyou glanced out the window as she prepared to flip the open sign.  "Looks like there's going to be a bit of rain coming this way."  Ryouga declined to comment, opting instead to adjust his bandana.  "That means it's either gonna get real busy, or real dead in here."

"Oh," came the pearl of wisdom from the broad shouldered youth.  The chef turned from the window to walk back behind the serving counter, patting him on the cheek as she passed.

"Cheer up a little, nothing wrong with a bit of rain."  She gave him a grin as she warmed up the grill.  Ryouga just continued to scowl, not that he actually noticed he was making a face right now, just force of habit.

"Hah, easy for you to say.  You don't turn into a…"  The lost boy was interrupted in his lamentation by the soft ring of the door chime.  He didn't recognize the customer, so Ryouga simply shrugged off his comment.  Folding his arms across his chest, he took a seat at a nearby table.  Ukyou went into her cheery business mode and started taking the first order of the day.  _It's raining again outside and she thinks it's the greatest thing in the world.  **Hello, didn't she just tell you that this means it could get busy today?  Living here does cost money you know.**_

A few blocks across town the Tendou household was weathering a collective mood similar to Ryouga's.  With the possible exception of one Tendou Kasumi, who may or may not have been having a bad day.  It was hard to tell with her.  Nabiki could also be counted in that realm of possibility.  It was doubly hard to discern the current mood of one who was not in the household proper.  As was her wont, the shrewd business-minded Tendou sibling had departed just prior to the breakfast debacle stating the need to take care of 'urgent business' across town.

  Ranma rubbed the side of his sore arm, shooting a glare at Akane who was putting that accursed mallet back into where ever she pulled it from.  "What was that for?"  Akane for her part, just scowled back at him.  "Aww, c'mon.  I tried it see?"  Indeed proving his point Ranma took yet another bite from the contents of the bowl in his hands.   _It doesn't burn so much going down this time.  _However, as with the previous bite, he failed to suppress a wince.  

"Boy, eat the breakfast that your fiancée has prepared for you.  It's only proper."  The Saotome patriarch intoned as much wisdom into his words as he could.  Inwardly, Ranma wanted to scream.  _Every single conversation around her with pop has to do with marriage.  Why the hell can't the old man be content for one little year longer.  Let me get out of High School at the very least.  Gah, can't even support myself right now, let alone a wife.  _On the surface, he just continued to chew, wordlessly gulping down the rest of the food in the bowl.

 When he was finished Ranma left the table.  Sparing a sidelong glance toward Akane, he walked out to the dojo to work off pent up frustration.  A testament to her determination, Akane's cooking was only giving him mild indigestion now.  _Feh, What am I supposed to do now?  Dammit, just when I thought things could change for the better this time.  Now that he was working himself up he wanted something to vent on.  Looking around the dojo a dark shape in the corner caught his eye**.  You're not seriously thinking of hitting that thing are you?**  Gotta problem with it?  **Er, isn't it a little, I don't know…masochistic?**  Maybe._

Two minutes into his 'workout' Ranma paused in mid-swing.  The target was already pretty much mangled despite his deliberate softening of his blows.  _This didn't feel quite as good as I thought it would.  **Tried to warn you.**  Did you?  Must've missed that._  Ranma began pummeling the practice dummy once again.  **_Come on, what is the big deal, just talk to her._**_  Why should I talk to that tom…**cut the crap, you know you want to.**_  Ranma stopped again, not because of the pang of conscience he was having, but because he felt someone watching him.  It was a familiar aura actually, one he was well acquainted with…_Akane._

When he canted his head to look her way, he saw that she was simply staring at him.  Well, not exactly at 'him', but the practice dummy that she had tailored to resemble him.  Or, what was left of it anyway, the martial artist had reduced the dummy to little more than a frame with bits of fluff attached.  "Heh, sorry bout that Akane, must've hit it harder than I thought."  Akane took the time that he was using to scratch the back of his head to right her gaping jaw.  

"Ranma, what are you doing out here?"  Akane winced inwardly when her question came out more like a demand.  She was just so shocked at what she saw that the control over her emotions she had been carefully cultivating this past week, slipped.  Ranma almost made the mistake of firing off his standard jibe, just as he saw the regret flicker in her eyes.  Regret, and something more…he chided himself for not being able to read little subtleties from people such as this.  _So much for martial arts master, I can read my opponents moves, but not a girl's emotions when I need to._

Trying to steer herself back in the right direction, Akane formed another question, "How come you ran off so fast back there?"

"Huh?  You mean just now?"  Ranma thought her second question sounded just like the first one.  _Is she doing this on purpose?_

"Yes dum…that is,"  Akane wiped her sweaty palms on her dress.  "I meant to ask if you wanted to talk about anything?"  Akane nearly took a step backwards when he suddenly started walking over towards her.  "R-Ranma?"  The boy in question stopped a few feet short of where she stood.  Unsure of his intention, she was further puzzled when he stood on his tip-toes to look all the way over her head.

"Yeah, Akane.  I do want to talk to ya,"  Taking another look into the house beyond her, he finished up what he had to say.  "just not in here, you know how things get around the house."  Nodding mutely Akane finally realized what he had been looking for, or rather, who he had been looking for.  She sighed knowing full well what he was referring to.  "Alright, where should we go to talk then?  It's raining outside, remember."

"Oh, right."  Ranma paused to think.  "I'll go grab an umbrella, we'll just have to find somewhere.  Shouldn't take too long I imagine."  Akane watched Ranma bound off into the house.  _He just said 'an umbrella' not 'some umbrellas', or 'two umbrellas'._  She shook her head, they did need to talk, and now wasn't the time for day dreams.  Akane waited patiently by the door for him to return with however many umbrellas he thought they needed.  _It'd be nice if he did just bring the one umbrella though._

Outside, though the sky was dark gray, it was merely a light shower that fell across Nerima.  Further inspection of the horizon would give the telltale signs of a larger storm cell approaching.  Akane wasn't really paying attention to the weather however, as she was trying to enjoy taking a walk with Ranma.  He even brought just the one umbrella.  She barely noticed the smile that rose unbidden to her lips, more pressing thoughts coming to mind.  Ranma noticed the pleasant expression and wondered what caused it.  He looked up at the roof of the umbrella he was currently holding.  _Strange_, he thought.  _I could a sworn that there were three umbrellas in the stand before I went out to the dojo this morning._

"Akane," he began as soon as they were a few blocks from the dojo.  "About yesterday, I wanted to say that,"  She cut him off by nearly halting, to which he had to stop suddenly to keep the umbrella over her.

"It's ok, Ranma.  I understand what happened.  It…it made me mad, at first you know, seeing you like that.  Seeing her do that to you."  Akane kept her eyes on her shoes up to this point, not sure if she could look directly at Ranma right now.  Sheer force of will kept her fists from clenching.  Ranma watched her carefully, trying to figure out how to keep going with this.

"For what it's worth, I want to…apologize.  It should a never happened Akane.  I'm sorry."  Now Ranma was the one looking down at a very interesting crack in the sidewalk.  She could hear the sincerity in his voice, and it made her raise her eyes, just a little.

"Ranma, It's ok.  I'm sorry too, and I forgive you.  If you can forgive me,"  the last came out almost as a question, so soft did she say it.  This was Ranma's turn to be surprised.  He hid it well, only moving closer to her as if to tell her something more.  Maybe a little more important or private that what they had been talking about.  Akane shuffled her feet nervously at his proximity, the umbrella wasn't all that large after all.  His lips moved almost wordlessly, to her what he said sounded like 'I forgive you,' but it could just as easily have been something else altogether.

Not too sure what had made him do it, nonetheless Ranma felt that kissing Akane was the right thing to do at the time.  Getting no objection from his fiancée, he didn't break away.  At first there had been a mutual nervousness, and awkwardness to the act, but that soon faded with the long seconds that they remained standing there.  The handle of the umbrella hung limply in the crook of Ranma's arm, naturally his mind was elsewhere at the moment.  However when the umbrella fell away with a gust of wind Ranma noticed immediately the tingle of the curse passing through his body.  

_Of all the times, why now?_  Ranma opened her eyes when she felt Akane tense up, suddenly jerking away.  Akane turned away too fast and lost her footing in a deep puddle of water.  Before she could fall very far, Akane felt her wrist caught in a strong but somewhat small grip.  Letting herself be pulled back upright, Akane stood there for a long moment, feeling the drizzle plaster her bangs to her forehead.  When the redhead's grip fell away from her wrist, Akane looked up at odds with the feelings swirling around in her head.

"I didn't mean…I wasn't expecting, Ah."  Akane struggled with the words she wanted to use, not satisfied with whatever she was coming up with. "I don't want to give you an excuse, I don't know what I want right now…"  Again she tried to meet the stare she knew Ranma was giving her.  Through the falling rain those bright blue eyes met with hers, she could see a sadness there, and also that determination she knew was such an integral part of Ranma.  _That is what I have to remember.  Despite everything else, this is 'Ranma' I'm standing here with._

Ranma watched Akane evenly, then made a decision.  "Akane, let's walk…we really need to talk I think.  No time like the present, right?"  She put up her confidant front, both for herself and for the benefit of Akane.  "We're both already wet as it is, a little more rain ain't gonna hurt."  With that said, the two walked off down the street, leaving the umbrella where it lay, discarded at the side of the road.

Chapter Four (Part 2): Dance the Night - Coming Soon 


	5. Dance the Night

A Ranma ½ Fanfic by INABN  
  
Original Ranma ½ Characters and Settings ©Rumiko Takahashi  
  
Used without express permission.  
  
All characters not part of the Original Ranma ½ cast are property of INABN  
  
1 Wasurenagusa  
  
1.1 Chapter Four (Part 2): Dance the Night  
  
Ranma toweled off his hair in the bathroom. He had gone there to switch back after Akane was done drying off and changing clothes from their walk in the rain. That went well, I think. Now, I just need to set things right with the others. Since Shampoo is still gone, I guess that leaves Uc- chan. He sighed, tossing the damp towel onto the drying rack. Course, there's Ryouga. Probably run into him soon to boot. Ranma's thoughts changed direction as his stomach protested the need for lunch. "Wonder who's cooking this time." With a new short term goal, he headed to the kitchen to find out.  
  
Akane was waiting for him at the foot of the stairs. He guessed she must be hungry too from the way she was tapping her foot and glancing toward the table. "What's up Akane, food ready?" She nodded and started walking to the table. "Didn't have ta wait for me you know." Ranma said it off-hand so she wouldn't think he was teasing her. As he entered the living room he spotted the two fathers just rising from the Shogi board. Ranma rolled his eyes, those two are only good for playing that game, I swear. But then, he revised, there isn't much else to do on a really rainy day like this.  
  
While they all ate, the usual banter was kept to a minimum, the stormy weather helped to dampen everyone's mood. Aside from himself and Akane, everyone else was glad that the foul mood Ranma seemed to have been in had dissipated. Nabiki still wasn't back from wherever it was that she had gone. This too could be considered another blessing, since it left one less person to needle Ranma. Akane definitely wasn't up for it right now, even to try and keep up appearances for their meddling fathers. Yet, neither Akane nor Ranma did anything the opposite of their norm. Overall, this had the beginnings of a quiet day.  
  
Souun worried, then again, it seemed to him that he was doing a lot of that these days. Usually it was due to some misfortune that befell the Tendou household, specifically the actual home. Goodness knows how we are going to keep paying for the repairs here. If there was one thing he shared with this eldest daughter, it was the fact that he was willing to overlook some of the small things. In doing so, it made the larger problems not seem so bad. But, today things were off. Nothing overly disastrous had occurred, and it was nearly one in the afternoon! Souun felt that it was his duty to not alert the masses, and ignore it just this once. Maybe it could even turn out to be a quiet day.  
  
Genma watched his old friend, he would be inclined to voice his concerns if it didn't mean an assurance of getting soaking wet. He always had a little trouble concealing his emotions, it's best not to stir the hornets nest. Genma paused to reflect on that last sentiment. Well, it's best not to unless it goes toward strengthening the Art! Why, I remember me and the boy.Ranma stared at his father when he suddenly stopped eating and spaced out for a second. Uh, oh.he's dreaming up another weird training exercise.Better nip this one in the bud. Reaching over with his chopsticks, he rapped Genma on the nose, startling the older Saotome out of his reverie. "Boy, what did I tell you about interrupting my meditations!"  
  
When the fight died down, the place was in shambles. Souun openly wept a dirge for his poor home while Kasumi went about straitening out the majority of the debris. Akane fumed and tried her best to control her temper and not send her fiancé on a flight touring the grimier parts of Nerima. Genma 'growfed' from near the koi pond, having been unceremoniously tossed out into the rain. Ranma calmly remained seated at the table while he finished both his food and his fathers. Yes, it was going to be another quiet day in Nerima.  
  
Forty minutes prior to the fiasco at the Tendou home Ucchan's was starting to get a little busy. Ukyou had been right in her assessment that the rain was likely to bring in the customers. Ryouga had offered to help her with the orders, but Ukyou had been forced to decline his offer on matters of principle; it just was not good business to have the waiter get lost on his way to and from the grill. Instead, she had him clean the bar as the customers left. He had little trouble following a straight path as long as he kept it in sight all the while.  
  
"I'd like a shrimp Okonomiyaki please," a customer called out when it came to his turn at the counter. The chef heartily nodded assent and moved to fix the order.  
  
"One shrimp special coming right up!" Ukyou's spatula flashed across the hot griddle, depositing the meal on a waiting plate. A flick of the wrist and the customer was left to catch the incoming projectile, which he did with the practiced ease of a regular patron of Ucchan's. Ryouga stumbled out of the way of a group of girls that just entered to get out of the rain. They giggled amongst themselves, while putting away their colorful umbrellas. The lost boy was forced to focus his attention on cleaning duties when he caught bits and pieces of the girls' conversation. He really hadn't realized how descriptive girls could be about things they liked; this apparently applied especially to boys they liked. The whole thing began to really make him nervous.  
  
Ryouga nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Hey sugar, if they catch you acting like that, they are going to start talking about you." Ukyou had seen the girls come in, and knew something about Ryouga's track record when it came to members of the opposite sex. Truth be told, she had taken advantage of his shyness once or twice. It was pretty funny when she thought about it. But it was also dangerous for her store if something got out of hand and he was teased too much. She had always wanted to remodel the front of the store, just not like how Ryouga would go about it.  
  
He visibly calmed down once the voice registered as belonging to Ukyou. His weak laugh betrayed his inner feelings though. "Heh, you know, I don't think I want that. Did you hear what they were saying about Mousse?" Just thinking about it made him shudder visibly.  
  
"No hun, I didn't. What did they say?" She couldn't resist the small temptation to pester him. She had heard what they said, and it was rather embarrassing even to her. I wonder if they have something there? Better just leave that thought alone. Ukyou noticed the boy turning all shades of red again as the girls moved closer to find a table. "Never mind Ryouga, let's get you back to work, ok?" He just nodded, letting her pull him back to the counter as he was straying toward the stairs. So things went for another hour when the rain finally let up.  
  
"Whew, I hope that is the rush for the afternoon. Three hours of steady orders is enough for me." The Okonomiyaki chef wiped her forehead more as a gesture than for any sweat built up there. Not that it wasn't hot standing over a grill for hours on end. When the rain abated, the few straggling lunchtime customers left about their business. Ryouga sat down after cleaning the remaining tables as soon as they were unoccupied. "Thanks for the help sugar, I forgot how tiring it was with Konatsu not around." Ryouga nodded, surprised that he had been able to stay in one place so long. Ukyou's constant requests for him to come back to the front had helped a bit in that department.  
  
"So, what else are you planning to do today?" Ukyou's question put him off for a second. His 'plans' were usually pretty linear. They consisted of 'walk around until I find Ranma, then extract painful revenge once I have found him.' Damn, that is starting to sound pretty lame. I've been doing this for the past two years in a row. And that was after I found him the first time. He looked up from where he sat, "dunno, I guess I can see how long I can stay around here to help with stuff." He stood up to brush his shirt off, when done he raised his fist in the air and grimly announced his intentions, "Ukyou Kuonji, prepare to be helped!"  
  
Both of them burst out laughing at his remark, even if it wasn't that funny. "Ok sugar, anything you say. I'd be hard pressed to stop you anyway." Ryouga gave her a fanged grin. Picking up his dishrag, he twirled it about like one of his bandanas, and set out to polish the tables and the bar spotless. This is fun, I hardly ever have fun these days. Better make the best of it pal, something always comes up here, you know that. So true, plus Ukyou seems happy. Let's keep it that way.  
  
Ranma considered his options as carefully as he could. What to do, what to do. Running a hand across his pigtail he sat down on his futon with an audible thump. "Let's see. I need to talk to Uc-chan. She 'is' the only one still here for the summer. That at least leaves the old ghoul and Shampoo out of this for now, Mousse too I suppose." He scratched his hair in thought. Who else, oh.Ryouga. Crap, that could get ugly. Gotta be some way around a pitched fight, not that I can't whip his ass, but Akane already doesn't like us fighting as it is. Plus, she needs to know about good ol' P-chan. How to get that out into the open, and convince Akane about it.  
  
He delved into the matter a little further, coming to the conclusion that dealing with Ryouga first might be for the best. Get the hard stuff outta the way.  
  
Now all he had to do was 'find' Ryouga. Hey, this is a first I think. You've never really gone out and looked for P-chan before, have you? Nope, didn't really wanna start now, but oh well. He leaned over and lay on his back against the futon for a minute, lost in planning what he should do. Ranma lay there with an arm across his face, just relaxing, when there came a knock at the door.  
  
When he gave no reply, whoever was at the door knocked a second time. "Ranma? Are you in there? It's Akane." Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he got up to open the door. "Hey," Akane gave him a worried look. "Something the matter, Ranma? You left after lunch so quickly." It took her some doing, but she felt that she had kept down her usual accusing tone this time. Either he noticed how hard she was trying, or she pulled it off well enough, because Ranma bit back his obligatory insult.  
  
"S'ok Akane. Just thinkin' about what to tell the others." Ranma leaned against the doorjamb as he spoke.  
  
"What do you mean, tell them the truth of course." She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. The stare she got from Ranma shot her down real quick.  
  
"Don't think that'd be the best thing to do in this case. That 'might' have worked at the start. Maybe. But, it's only gonna make a bigger mess of things right now." She just stared at him, a little thrown off.  
  
"Well, what can we do then, huh?" Akane wanted to poke him in the chest, even if it wouldn't accomplish anything. She had been hoping that with Ranma finally making a choice, then everything else would fall into place. Is that what he is doing, really making a choice? He hasn't exactly come out and said it to me. But then, isn't this all good enough? Is this all I am going to get from now on, just little glimpses of what he truly feels inside? He still isn't being fair to me, to us. Akane shook her head, it felt strange to even think of herself and Ranma collectively.  
  
For his part, Ranma just watched the expressions flicker across Akane's face. She seemed to be caught up in something, and he didn't know what it was. "I've already decided who to talk to first. After that, it's off to Ucchan's I guess. Ukyou is my friend, I owe it to her to tell her what's up will all of this." Akane nodded, she considered the Okonomiyaki chef a friend of sorts too. She felt theirs was a friendly rivalry, and if they were to no longer be rivals, then friendship was all there was left. Now she wasn't stupid, nothing was that clean cut. Ranma was right though, Ukyou deserved more that she was likely to get at this point.  
  
Just then, Ranma's actual words came to her. '.after that, it's off to Ucchan's.' What did he mean, if not Ukyou, who did he want to talk to first? That bimbo Shampoo was back in China, no one else but.Kodachi? "Ranma? Are, are you going to see Kodachi?" If his words did not convince her, the sick expression on his face did.  
  
"Uh, Kodachi?" Aww, I totally forgot about that psycho. "Er, I guess now that you mention it, we'd better get to her before she hears about it from someone else. That's the last thing we need, her runnin' around the place with that crap of hers." Man, dealin' with Ryouga was going to be bad enough. Now this too? Akane frowned unconsciously as she realized that Kodachi wasn't who he had intended to speak to first. If not her, then who? "I still gotta see someone else first thought, maybe Kodachi should be after Ukyou."  
  
Later that day, Ranma headed off to find Ryouga. "Man that was hard, dancing around the topic with Akane was dangerous. Maybe I should' a just told her I needed to talk to Ryouga." She'd get suspicious then though. Like she wasn't curious enough to begin with. She is entitled to know, you know. Yea, I do. He kept on walking, thinking to himself about how to find the lost boy. "Where can I even start? He usually runs inta me. Man, this is gonna be a long day, I just know it." Ranma slid his hands into his pant pockets as he crossed the street to continue the search. 


End file.
